In a complicated plea bargain arrangement that was worked out in early 2009 after being charged with four murders, Scott Lee Kimball was allowed to plead guilty to two counts of second-degree murder in the deaths of Terry Kimball, Jennifer Marcum, LeAnn Emry and Kaysi McLeod, in part so that the victims' families could have some semblance of closure. One of the counts pertained to Terry Kimball's murder, and the second count pertained to the murders of Marcum, Emry, and McLeod. As part of the plea bargain, Kimball also agreed to assist authorities in locating his victims' remains.
As a result, the remains LeAnn Emry were found on Wednesday, March 11, 2009, in the Book Cliffs region of southeastern Utah. On Monday, June 29, 2009, remains believed to be those of Terry Kimball were found in a remote area of Vail Pass. A year earlier, on Tuesday, September 30, 2008, a hunter had discovered a skull and other bones in a remote area of northwest Colorado. The FBI subsequently confirmed that the skull and bones were those of Kaysi McLeod. Marcum's remains have not been found, even though Lori McLeod told FBI agents that Kimball told her that Marcum's remains were near Rifle, Colo. She explained that she and Kimball had been passing through Rifle on their way to Denver from Las Vegas when Kimball told her that he worked for the FBI and was involved in a case that involved Marcum's murder.
After being sentenced in 2008 to 53 years in prison on theft and a number of other charges, Kimball was sentenced on Thursday, October 8, 2009, to an additional 70 years in prison for his guilty pleas to second-degree murder. Although the 43-year-old serial murderer believes he will one day get out of prison on parole, the Colorado Department of Corrections lists his estimated parole eligibility date as July 28, 2056, at which time Kimball would be 89.
