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Gregory Chasteen, 26, of Cincinnati, pleaded guilty to armed robbery with threat of force in La Crosse County Circuit Court.
In a separate hearing, Erin Moore, 26, of Falmouth, Ky., pleaded guilty to a reduced charge of party to the crime of robbery with threat of force.
Felony charges of possession of narcotic drugs and of a firearm by a felon were dismissed against Chasteen but can be considered during his sentencing.
Sentencing dates will be scheduled within 45 days. Chasteen requested the hearings be set close together in order to see his wife in the courtroom.
Under the terms of the plea agreement, La Crosse County Assistant District Attorney Brian Barton will ask that Chasteen receive no more than three years initial confinement.
Chasteen was accused of showing a black semi-automatic handgun in his waistband and demanding the painkiller Oxycontin at the Degen-Berglund Pharmacy at 111 Sand Lake Road about 6:30 p.m. Dec. 6, 2007. He was given two bottles, then ran to a waiting vehicle with Moore behind the wheel, according to the criminal complaint.
They fled west on Interstate 90, but Moore lost control of the vehicle on slippery roads during a police pursuit and crashed into the median near the Dakota, Minn., exit. A loaded 9 mm semi-automatic handgun was found outside the passenger door in the snow, the complaint stated.
Moore, a former nurse, told authorities she and Chasteen were unemployed heroin users enroute to Seattle. Moore said her husband did not tell her he intended the armed robbery.
Chasteen is facing similar armed robbery charges in Kentucky, said defense attorney Tim Guth.
Anne Jungen can be reached at (608) 791-8224 or ajungen@lacrossetribune.com.
