New information about the Green River Killer case is raising questions about whether a plea deal in King County could leave him open to the death penalty in another jurisdiction.
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Green River Murders (generic - composite of victims, Ridgway)
Green River Murders
GREEN RIVER MURDERS CASEComplete Coverage Of The CaseSlideshow: Images From The Courtroom Slideshow: Ridgway At Crime Scenes Timeline: Key Moments In The Case Photo Gallery: Ridgway, Victims, Police InvestigationSurvey: Support Plea Bargain?
It has long been suspected that the Green River Killer escaped police pressure here in King County by moving his crimes elsewhere -- perhaps as far as Oregon, even San Diego.
If that's true, can a deal to save Gary Ridgway's life here still leave him open to the death penalty elsewhere?
The parade of bodies left behind by the Green River Killer seemed to stop suddenly in the mid-1980s.
But he was still out there -- somewhere.
"Not for a minute did anyone on the task force believe this guy stopped in 1984," said Bob Keppel, one of the original members of the Green River Task Force.
Sources say Gary Ridgway is talking about new murders. But is he talking about crimes outside King County?
Keppel, who spoke with KIRO 7 from his home in Texas, says investigators have been looking all over western Washington for years.
"There are other jurisdictions to consider: Snohomish County, Pierce County, Thurston County, Lewis County, maybe even Skagit County," he said.
KIRO 7 has learned that Lewis County investigators have shared information on unsolved murders in that area with the Green River Task Force.
Sheriff John McKroskey says if Gary Ridgway admits to crimes in Lewis County, it would not be part of any plea bargain now under way.
Pierce County Prosecutor Gerry Horne says that would be true of any murders Ridgway confesses to outside of King County's jurisdiction.
"Although we are state prosecutors, we make the decisions ourselves with regard to charging decisions," Horne said.
We know of no confessions from Gary Ridgway other than those sources have revealed -- and all of those involve crimes in King County.
But Task Force investigators openly say their work is far from over.
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