Boise man pleads guilty to killing ex-girlfriend 2 years ago, faces life in prison
Almost two years to the day of his ex-girlfriend’s brutal killing, David L. Randall pleaded guilty Tuesday to beating and stabbing her to death in December 2019. He is expected to spend the rest of his life in prison, the Ada County Prosecutor’s Office said in a news release.
Randall, 58, of Boise, has been in custody since his arrest on Dec. 16, 2019. Darla Fletcher, 56, was found dead at Randall’s home on Cambria Lane north of State Street the day before.
Ada County prosecutors previously said in court that Fletcher ended the relationship and moved out of the home about a month before she was killed. She and Randall scheduled a time for her to come back to the house to pick up her remaining belongings, they said, which is when he was believed to have tortured and killed her.
Randall had been stalking Fletcher for about a month before her death, prosecutors said, and multiple people were concerned for her safety.
Randall underwent a mental health evaluation after his arrest at the request of his attorneys, and was declared incompetent to stand trial. After he had his competency restored, prosecutors took the case to a grand jury, which indicted Randall in July 2020.
The evidence presented to the grand jury detailed how Fletcher suffered fractured bones, bruising, abrasions, lacerations, pain, wounds, hemorrhages and blood loss before her death, a copy of the indictment stated.
Randall pleaded guilty about a month before his jury trial was set to begin.
Prosecutors in Idaho can seek the death penalty in first-degree murder cases, but Randall’s plea will carry a maximum sentence of life in prison, according to the prosecutors’ news release. A spokesperson for the Ada County Prosecutor’s Office did not respond to calls and emails seeking clarity on the matter.
Randall is scheduled to be sentenced by District Judge Steven Hippler on March 4.
This story was originally published December 14, 2021 at 6:07 PM.
