STEAMBOAT SPRINGS, Colo.—A man scheduled for a retrial in a fight that killed a Fort Bragg, N.C. soldier is planning to plead guilty manslaughter.
Court documents filed Tuesday show Eduardo Capote has agreed to the plea that also calls for a three-year jail sentence. He’s accused of punching 37-year-old Sgt. 1st Class Richard Lopez outside a downtown Steamboat Springs bar on January 2009. Lopez fell and hit his head on the pavement.
Capote and his brother, David Capote, were tried in February for the case. Both were acquitted on a third-degree assault charge but jurors deadlocked on a more serious second-degree assault charge against Eduardo Capote.
Eduardo Capote’s attorney says he was confident they would’ve won a retrial but that the plea allows his client to move on with his life and guarantees a shorter jail term than if he’d been convicted.
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Information from: Steamboat Pilot & Today,
