Trial scheduled in Priest Lake slaying

SANDPOINT - The clock could be ticking for Tyrah Brea Brown to decide if she's willing to enter into a plea deal to resolve first-degree murder and grand theft charges.

Her 10-day jury trial in 1st District Court is set to start on March 2, court records indicate. However, Brown is contemplating a plea deal, the terms of which remain under wraps.

Prosecutor-elect Louis Marshall and public defender Serra Woods both confirm a plea agreement is on the table, but have so far declined to say what the proposed terms are.

Brown, who waived her right to a speedy trial, has been in custody for 19 months. She is being held at the Bonner County Jail in lieu of $5 million bail.

Brown, 26, and her husband, Keith, are charged with the shooting death of Leslie Carlton Breaw at Priest Lake in January 2007. They are also accused of taking a $56,000 escrow check belonging to Breaw.

The Browns were arrested the following March by the FBI in Fort Myers Beach, Fla., the day after Breaw's remains were discovered within walking distance of his Coolin home.

Breaw, 48, was slain by a .22-caliber shotgun wound to the head, according to prior testimony in the case.

Keith Brown, also 48, has alleged the shooting occurred accidentally during a tug of war over a rifle amid a confrontation over allegations Breaw had sexually assaulted Tyrah.

Tyrah Brown initially told authorities she shot Breaw, although Keith Brown has stated it was a false confession designed to protect him. She later passed a polygraph examination concerning her direct involvement in the shooting.

The polygraph also appeared to give credence to the sexual assault allegations.

Keith Brown is also awaiting trial, but he has been committed to the Idaho Department of Correction due to questions concerning his fitness to proceed because of unspecified mental health problems.

A status report on his ability to proceed is pending.