Louisiana KKK leader pleads guilty, gets life in slaying of Oklahoma woman during initiation

Louisiana Klan leader pleads guilty in killing

COVINGTON, La. — A Louisiana man has pleaded guilty to killing an Oklahoma woman a day after a Ku Klux Klan initiation.

Raymond Foster of Bogalusa was immediately sentenced Wednesday to life in prison for second-degree murder by state District Judge Peter Garcia.

Cynthia Lynch, a Klan recruit from Tulsa, Okla., was shot and killed in November 2008 a day after initiation rites in rural Tammany Parish, about 50 miles north of New Orleans.

On Monday, a former member of the group testified Lynch angrily cursed Foster and yelled “I want out” before he shot her to death.

After entering his plea Wednesday, Foster’s voice was shaky as he apologized to Lynch’s mother.

He told Virginia Lynch, “I hope you can find it in your heart to forgive me.”

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP’s earlier story is below.

COVINGTON, La. (AP) — A Louisiana man has pleaded guilty to killing an Oklahoma woman during a Ku Klux Klan initiation.

Raymond Foster of Bogalusa was immediately sentenced Wednesday to life in prison for second-degree murder by state District Judge Peter Garcia.

Cynthia Lynch, a Klan recruit from Tulsa, Okla., was shot and killed in November 2008 during initiation rites in rural Tammany Parish, about 50 miles north of New Orleans.

On Monday, a former member of the group testified Lynch angrily cursed Foster and yelled “I want out” before he shot her to death.

After entering his plea Wednesday, Foster’s voice was shaky as he apologized to Lynch’s mother.

He told Virginia Lynch, “I hope you can find it in your heart to forgive me.”

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