 Prothero and his colleagues ended up negotiating a plea bargain, whereby Ridgway would give authorities information about his crimes and lead them to the bodies of his victims which had never been found.In exchange, Ridgway would be spared the death penalty.On November 5, 2003, Prothero stood at Ridgway's side as the former truck painter pleaded guilty to forty-eight counts of aggravated murder.