Coombs guilty of robbery in 18-year-old's death

About a month short of the anniversary of 18-year-old Megan Meriwether's death, one of the two co-defendants in the case has pleaded guilty to robbery and is now expected to testify against the other.

Brianna Coombs, 19, pleaded guilty on Tuesday to felony robbery in the incident that led to Meriwether's death. Coombs has been in prison for about 11 months, and she heavily sobbed through the questions asked of her by Judge John Kutzman, County Attorney Josh Racki and defense attorney Carl Jensen. 

In a plea deal, the county attorney's office has dropped two other charges: tampering with physical evidence and criminal distribution of dangerous drugs. For her remaining charge, Racki recommended Coombs be sentenced to 40 years in prison, with 10 suspended. 

Along with the plea agreement sparing her a trial on all three charges, Coombs has also entered into a cooperative agreement with the county attorney's office, in which she agrees to testify against her boyfriend, 17-year-old Joseph Knowles, who is charged with Meriwether's murder after a drug deal went wrong. 

Racki said if Coombs backs out and does not testify against Knowles at his trial, which is currently scheduled for Oct. 27, then the plea agreement finalized in court on Tuesday is null. Coombs has already provided prosecutors with a written statement, Racki said, so if she were to retract from the cooperative agreement at Knowles' trial, prosecutors could still use her statement against him. 

Racki said there are currently no negotiations underway with Knowles' attorney about a possible plea deal. 

On Sept. 23, 2016, police found Meriwether's body in an alleyway near 10th Street and 8th Avenue South. She had been fatally stabbed in the trunk of her neck and her body was covered in marijuana, according to court documents. 

According to Coombs' testimony on Tuesday, everyone involved in the incident, including Coombs, Knowles and a juvenile boy in the car with them, knew before meeting Meriwether that they were planning to steal her marijuana without paying for it. 

Meriwether reportedly refused to let them leave, producing a knife in an attempt to get the marijuana back. Knowles and Coombs overtook her, however, and prosecutors allege Knowles used Meriwether's own knife to commit her murder. 

"It's a tragedy," Jensen said after the hearing. 

At Coombs' sentencing, which has not yet been scheduled, Jensen is still allowed to argue for a lower sentence than the one recommended by prosecutors. He may call witnesses and family, and said during Tuesday's hearing that a doctor will examine Coombs before her sentencing. From the stand Tuesday, Coombs said "yes" when asked if she had any mental health complications, although she did not specify. 

- An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated whose knife was reportedly used in Meriwether's death. The article has since been updated.