A Santa Rosa woman pleaded no contest Friday to assisting in the concealment of a killing believed to have been committed by her children's father.
Garicka Rush, 32, admitted a single count of being an accessory after the fact for Ryan Dietz, 29, who's accused of killing former corrections officer Jack Romero, 33, outside a downtown brew pub.
Rush, who was believed to be in a romantic triangle with the two men, was charged with disposing of ammunition a day after the shooting.
Under a cooperation agreement with prosecutors, she may now testify at Dietz's trial. Her maximum three-year prison sentence could be substantially reduced if her statements are deemed truthful.
The YMCA dance teacher and mother of three is to be released from county Friday. She has been in custody since her June 30 arrest.
Her children were with family members. Dietz is the father of two of the kids, said her lawyer.
Rush previously maintained she didn't know bullets were in boxes that she was seen dumping at two different locations. Her position changed with the plea.
"She is admitting she knew or should have known it was evidence in a crime," said her lawyer, Charles Applegate.
A trial date for Dietz has not been set.
Dietz's attorneys have been looking into allegations that Romero was fired from his job at the Sonoma County Jail because he had been carrying a concealed weapon. If true, it raises the possibility he could have been killed by someone else or that Dietz acted in self-defense, according to court papers.
Earlier this week, Judge Dana Simonds released the names of four witnesses mentioned in Romero's personnel file to defense lawyers.
One of his lawyers, Andy Martinez, said he was surprised to hear that Rush pleaded no contest to being an accessory. He said he did not know the value of her testimony.
"She had indicated she wasn't going down on this," Martinez said.
The slaying happened June 29 outside Third Street Ale Works. Rush and Romero were inside when Dietz appeared and the two men went outside. Police said Dietz pulled a gun and shot Romero multiple times.
Some of Romero's family members have described his relationship with Rush as platonic. Police contend that Dietz called Rush after the shooting and instructed her to dispose of ammunition matching bullets used in the shooting.
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