Leader pleads guilty to second-degree murder

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PRIEST RIVER — A Bonner County man accused of strangling and bludgeoning a woman to death and then forcing another man to help him cover up the slaying is pleading guilty to second-degree murder.

Bradley Michael Leader is scheduled to be sentenced on July 6 in 1st District Court. Bonner County Prosecutor Louis Marshall is recommending a prison term of 20 years to life in prison, court records show.

Leader, 68, remains held at the Bonner County Jail lieu of $1 million bail.

Leader is accused of killed Eveline Ursula Pederson, 66, outside her home northeast of Priest River on Aug. 17, 2020. Pederson's boyfriend reported her missing the same day.

Four days after the killing, a longtime acquaintance of Leader's told sheriff's deputies that Leader forced him at gunpoint to help dispose of Pederson's body off a remote U.S. Forest Service Road, according to a probable cause affidavit.

The cooperating witness told detectives that Leader appeared at his Priest River home and asked to be driven to Pederson's property off Gunsmoke Road. Shortly before their arrival, the man said Leader produced a .45-caliber revolver and informed him they were going to dispose of a dead body, the affidavit alleges.

The man objected, prompting Leader to draw back the hammer of the pistol and threaten to kill him if he did not comply, according to the affidavit. Leader allegedly told the man he killed Pederson following an argument.

Leader allegedly placed Pederson's body inside a minivan and dumped it in a forested area off Road No. 334 north of the city, the affidavit said. The man told detectives he and Leader drove around for several hours before returning to the man's home.

The man told deputies he believed Leader was planning to kill him and fled his home after Leader became distracted, court documents indicate. Leader was arrested without incident at the man's home and allegedly confessed to killing Pederson.

Leader, the affidavit alleges, admitted punching Pederson in the face, causing her to fall to the ground. Leader told deputies he used a length of baling twine to strangle Pederson and repeatedly hit her in the head with a chunk of concrete to hasten her demise.

Leader showed no remorse for the killing and expressed concern only for himself, detectives noted in the affidavit. A motive for the killing has not been disclosed.

Leader killed Pederson with malice aforethought, but without premeditation, a criminal complaint alleges. Leader is further accused of putting the revolver to the man's head during the abduction.

In addition to the second-degree murder charge, Leader was charged with second-degree kidnapping and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. He pleaded not guilty to the three charges late last year, setting the stage for a jury trial in April.

In exchange for the plea to the murder charge, the state agreed to dismiss the felony kidnapping and assault charges, according to a plea agreement in the case. Second-degree murder is punishable by 10 years to life, while the kidnapping and assault charges are punishable by up to 25 years and five years, respectively.

Keith Kinnaird can be reached at kkinnaird@bonnercountydailybee.com and followed on Twitter @KeithDailyBee.