Nancy Garrido Confesses in Jaycee Dugard Kidnap

Nancy Garrido has reportedly confessed to prosecutors that she kidnapped Jaycee Dugard back in 1991.

Garrido admitted kidnapping Jaycee Dugard, then 11 years old, at a bus stop in Lake Tahoe on June 10, 1991, The New York Times reports. Garrido is accused of helping her husband kidnap the young girl and hold her captive for 18 years. While Garrido denied any sexual contact with Dugard, she said she did know her husband, Phillip Garrido, was raping the girl.

Nancy Garrido is essentially being prosecuted as an accomplice. In addition to kidnapping, the charges against Garrido include forcible rape and lewd acts against a child. There were also numerous sex-related special circumstances attached to many of the charges.

Under the accomplice theory in criminal law, an accomplice may be charged and found guilty of the same crime as the perpetrator with the same degree of guilt even though they did not commit the same criminal act. Usually, this applies when they initially participate in the crime or acts leading up to the crime.

Garrido's lawyer, Stephen Tapson, said they were looking for leniency and hoped that she could be released before she died.

"We were hoping it would have some impact in terms of mercy shown to her," Tapson said. "But apparently there isn't any."

El Dorado County District Attorney Vern Pierson offered a plea bargain of 242 years in prison, reports the San Francisco Chronicle.

Rather than accept the offer, Nancy Garrido decided to take her chances in court since a sentence of 242 years is essentially a life sentence.

Related Resources:

• Lawyer: Couple Confessed in Jaycee Dugard kidnap (Findalw.com)
• Criminal Charges (Findlaw.com)
• Polygamist Charged with Felony Accomplice Rape of a Minor (Findlaw.com)