RIESS PLEADS GUILTY

Accused killer Lois Riess of Dodge County has pleaded guilty to first-degree murder in the death of a look-alike woman she befriended in Florida while on the run from Minnesota for allegedly killing her husband.
Riess appeared in Lee County Florida court Tuesday morning where she pleaded guilty to all four counts against her, including murder with a firearm, grand theft of a motor vehicle, grand theft and criminal use of personal identification of a deceased person.
A grand jury indicted Riess on those charges in June 2018.
In exchange for the guilty plea, which will keep her locked up in prison for the rest of her life, Florida withdrew the death penalty. Judge Branning immediately sentenced Riess to life in prison without the chance of parole.
“This defendant will never get out of prison,” said State Attorney Amira Fox. “This life sentence also alleviates any appellate issues that could arise and guarantees she will never be free again.”
Fox also said, “It allows the family of the victim to not have to go through the details of this crime at a trial.”
Chief Assistant State Attorney Rich Montecalvo, Assistant State Attorney Jennifer Royal and Assistant State Attorney Hamid Hunter prosecuted the case for Florida.
Also in court Tuesday Riess waived extradition to face charges in Minnesota for allegedly murdering her husband in their rural Blooming Prairie home in March 2018.
Riess’ alleged crime spree began on March 21, 2018 when the body of David Riess was found in their home after police were called to do a welfare check on him. A manhunt for Lois Riess quickly ensued with her being identified as a person of interest almost immediately.
On March 27, 2018, a warrant was issued in Dodge County District Court for theft against Riess. She had been suspected of wiping out her dead husband’s bank account after his death.
Riess surfaced in Fort Myers Beach, Fla. where surveillance footage showed her and Pamela Hutchinson talking at the Smokin’ Oyster Brewery. On April 9, 2018, Hutchinson was found murdered. Just four days later, Florida authorities filed murder charges against Riess, who had fled southwest Florida and was traveling through the Gulf states. She had last been detected in Corpus Christi, Texas.
U.S. Marshals finally captured Riess on April 19, 2018 at a bar in South Padre Island, Texas. A search warrant executed on her motel room uncovered two hand guns believed to be used in the crimes.
A judge ordered Riess to be held without bond and to be extradited to Florida where she has been held ever since.
Back in Minnesota, a Dodge County grand jury indicted Riess this past May on two counts of murder in the shooting death of David Riess. She faces first-degree and second-degree murder charges in Dodge County. The Minnesota State Attorney General’s Office is handling the local case.