Locker killer is expected to plead guilty

Judge to deny motion for retrial

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Kenneth Minor, the Harlem resident who helped Woodmere resident Jeffrey Locker kill himself in 2008, has tentatively agreed to plead guilty to first-degree manslaughter, according to his lawyer, Dan Gotlin. Minor would be sentenced to 12 years in prison.
He was convicted of second-degree murder in 2011 and sentenced to 20 years to life, but the conviction was overturned two years later based on incorrect instructions given to the jury by the judge during that trial.
A motion to bar a retrial on murder charges is still being considered by Manhattan State Supreme Court Justice Laura Ward. It is expected she will deny it. Minor would then enter his plea on Aug. 25.
Locker, a motivational speaker, was shown during the initial trial to be in substantial debt, and shortly before he was killed had purchased a $12 million life insurance policy and had a total of $18 million in life insurance. Neither policy would pay out for suicide.