EVANSTON — The woman charged with two murders in Evanston in 2016 has pleaded guilty to the crimes in Third District Court. She’ll face between 60 and 140 years in prison at her sentencing, which is scheduled for next month.

Michelle McWhorter, who initially pleaded not guilty by reason of mental illness, changed her plea to guilty in two counts of murder in the second degree stemming from the September 2016 deaths of Christina Caves and Dean Corlett. The change of plea took place at a hearing on Friday, Feb. 16, in Evanston.

McWhorter and her public defender, Kent Brown, and the Uinta County Attorney’s Office reached an agreement that would dismiss without prejudice two counts of burglary and two counts of theft. If the plea agreement is accepted by Judge Joseph Bluemel, McWhorter faces a sentence of not less than 25 years and no more than 60 years for Caves’ murder, and not less than 35 years and no more than 80 years for Corlett’s murder, with sentences to run consecutively (one after the other). McWhorter could also be ordered to pay approximately $10,000 in restitution and court fees. 

According to Wyoming statute, murder in the second degree, which is purposeful and malicious but not premeditated, carries a possible sentence of 20 years to life in prison. 

According to court documents, McWhorter confessed to the two murders while incarcerated at the Uinta County Jail on unrelated charges of suspicion of larceny and possessing paraphernalia. Court documents described McWhorter as being unapologetic during the initial confession. 

McWhorter, who has been held at the Wyoming State Hospital pending a trial originally planned for April, appeared in court Friday and said she understood the charges against her and the possible sentencing, and that she was voluntarily changing her plea. Bluemel said he found her to be cognizant and competent to enter into the plea agreement. 

McWhorter said in court that she knew both Caves and Corlett and provided details of what transpired on the day in September 2016 when Caves, 52, was murdered and on the day approximately a week later when Corlett was murdered, although McWhorter said she didn’t know the exact dates she committed the crimes. 

McWhorter said she went to Caves’ residence at River Glen apartments to get money for methamphetamine, but Caves said she had no money and told her to leave. McWhorter said she reached into her own pocket to get car keys but couldn’t find them and accused Caves of taking them. When Caves denied taking the keys, McWhorter said she began to go through the apartment in an attempt to find them, at which point she said Caves punched her in the head.

McWhorter said, “I attacked her full force then,” and said she strangled Caves and at one point went into the kitchen and got a butter knife she also used to attack Caves. 

McWhorter said the attack continued until she could tell Caves was deceased and then she searched through Caves’ belongings. She said when she left, she locked the door behind her. While McWhorter said she did not know the exact date of the murder, Caves’ body was discovered on Sept. 10, 2016, by law enforcement responding to a welfare check after neighbors called police when they hadn’t seen Caves in several days. 

In court on Friday, McWhorter said about a week after she killed Caves she went to Corlett’s residence on County Road. She said she had recently met Corlett through a mutual acquaintance and was walking around with her dog, hungry and with nowhere to go. She said she went to Corlett’s home because it was the closest place she knew.

When he answered the door, she asked to use his phone. He refused to let her in and told her to leave, at which point she said she entered the residence and attacked 69-year-old Corlett. McWhorter said she strangled him and then dragged him into the kitchen and stabbed him with a pocket knife. 

McWhorter said she thought Corlett might have still been alive when she stopped the attack, but if so, he was unable to move or do anything to stop her. She said she also went through Corlett’s residence, taking cash, food, soda and cigarettes prior to leaving and locking the door behind her. 

Corlett’s body was discovered on Sept. 26, 2016, again by law enforcement officers responding to a welfare check, which was requested by Corlett’s son who lives out of state. 

Bluemel set McWhorter’s sentencing for 9 a.m. on April 19. Brown, McWhorter’s attorney, requested that she continue to be held at the Wyoming State Hospital pending sentencing, and said he had spoken to staff at WSH and they were willing to have McWhorter return to that facility. Speaking on her own behalf, McWhorter said she would like to remain at WSH so she could continue to get her “medications straightened out.” 

County attorney Loretta Howieson, however, objected to McWhorter returning to the State Hospital. Howieson said she saw no reason why a return to WSH was warranted and noted that State Hospital staff have frequently worked with inmates at the Uinta County Jail to provide mental health services.

Bluemel said he understood the request, but the court also found no reason for McWhorter to remain at the State Hospital; he ordered that she be remanded to the Uinta County Jail to await sentencing.