Hall Pleads Guilty to Rape, Murder of Kelsey Smith

A Kansas man entered a surprise guilty plea to the kidnapping, rape and murder of an 18-year-old teenager who was abducted June 2, 2007 from a Target store parking lot in Kansas City. Edwin Hall, 27, pleaded guilty to capital murder, aggravated kidnapping, rape and aggravated sodomy in the death of 18-year-old Kelsey Smith.

The plea came one day after a judge ruled that prosecutors could seek the death penalty for the murder charge.

Hall's plea came during what was scheduled to be a change of venue hearing. His guilty plea means that he can avoid the death penalty and receive a life sentence without the possibility of parole.

District Attorney Phill Kline told the court that Hall (left) told investigators that when he first saw Smith at the Target store, where she had gone to buy supplies for her high school graduation party that night, he thought she was about 12 years old and had "nice legs."

Strangled With Her Own Belt

He waited in the parking lot for her to come out and then grabbed her and forced her into her own vehicle. The abduction was partially recorded on the store's surveillance cameras.

Smith's nude body was found four days later by a tree in a wooded area about 20 miles from the Target parking lot. She had been strangled to death with her own belt. Her clothes were nearby, according to Kline.

Hall was arrested the following day after he was linked to the pickup truck on the Target store's videotapes and investigators interviewed him.

Hall's attorney Carl Cornwell said he expected his client would receive a life without parole sentence. "He will die in the penitentiary," Cornwell said.

Hall's trial was originally scheduled Sept. 16, which will now be the day he is sentenced.

See Also:
Man Pleads Guilty to Rape, Murder of Kelsey Smith

Background:
The Murder of Kelsey Smith

Forum:
Discuss The Kelsey Smith Case

^{Photo: Family Photo, Mug Shot}