Death penalty off table in murder trial

A second man accused of the July 2009 murder of Belinda Beisly waived his right to a preliminary hearing Wednesday in exchange for special prosecutor Tim Anderson's promise the state will not seek the death penalty.

Associate Judge Neal Quitno accepted Jeremy Maples waiver after going over the implications of such a waiver with Maples and defense attorneys Rebecca Ellison and Patricia Green. Quitno told Maples and his public defenders Rebecca Elliston and Patricia Green the two punishment options for first-degree murder are life without parole or the death penalty.

With the death penalty off the table, Maples, 33, would spend the rest of his life in prison if convicted.

The charges against Maples and Beisly's estranged husband, Bob Beisly II, 57, of Nevada, were filed earlier this year, more than three years after Mrs. Beisly was found shot to death in her rural Richards home July 15, 2009. Court documents allege Maples committed first-degree murder when "after deliberation," he "knowingly caused" Mrs. Beisly's death by shooting her.

Maples was arrested in rural Cedar County near El Dorado Springs on Feb. 9. Beisly was arrested the day before at his home in Nevada.

Investigators allege in the months following the murder, Maples, who they described as a part-time farm hand of Beisly's, changed his story several times. He first denied being at the Beisly ranch after 11 p.m. the day of the murder and stated he had never been inside the residence.

Maples' girlfriend also was interviewed about Maples whereabouts on the day of the murder. However, she later recanted her story and conceded she changed it to fall in line with his.

She eventually told detectives Maples asked her to throw away the work boots he had worn on the night of the murder and to wash the clothes he had been wearing.

As their stories began to unravel, Maples allegedly said he was at the Beisly ranch on the night of the murder, but claimed he did not know Mrs. Beisly was home. When he entered the residence, he said, she was already dead.

Mrs. Beisly's body was discovered the next day when a Vernon County Sheriff's deputy went to the ranch at the request of a family member to check on her.

Court documents allege Beisly offered Maples $10,000 to kill his wife and the two discussed the killing three or four times throughout the year leading up to the shooting.

Investigators have said Maples never called the police to report Beisly's attempts to hire him.

For several months after the murder, Maples alleged Beisly raised his salaryfor no apparent reason, and then ended it as suddenly as it began. Maples never asked Beisly why he increased his pay or why he stopped it.

Investigators said that during a September 2012 interview, a "cooperating witness" said Maples admitted killing Mrs. Beisly, a story that was allegedly confirmed by yet another witness.

Both men have been charged with first-degree murder in the case. Beisly has already been arraigned. He has pleaded not guilty. Earlier this month, a judge refused to set a bond for Beisly.

Maples will be arraigned on June 4 at 11 a.m. For now, both men are being held in the Vernon County jail without bond.

In addition to the murder charge, Mrs. Beisly's family has filed a wrongful death suit stemming from the case.