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Do you think the judge will accept Ratcliff's plea?
By GabeSemenza in Crowdsourcing
July 3, 2008

Michael Lewis Ratcliff admitted under oath that he lied to a grand jury in October.

As part of a plea deal offered to him by special prosecutor Terry McDonald, Ratcliff said he lied to grand jurors about having sex with his accuser and about making unwarranted advances on the accuser.

Tomorrow's Advocate is loaded with stories that cover nearly every angle of this highly public and important story.

Two of those angles covered include Advocate reporter Bj Lewis's interview with Ratcliff's accuser. The accuser describes how he feels about the plea and how he learned about it.

In addition to many other stories, I interviewed McDonald, the special prosecutor, and asked him why he offered Ratcliff a plea.

I also ask DA Steve Tyler, who presented evidence to the grand jury that indicted Ratcliff, if there is enough evidence to have convicted Ratcliff in a jury trial.

In the meantime, visiting San Antonio Judge Mark Luitjen has until Aug. 15, when he's expected to be in Victoria again, to decide if he will accept the plea.

Do you think he will?

Gabe Semenza/Advocate public service editor