Do Terry Kimball, Leann Emry, Kaysi McLeod, Jennifer Marcum and Society Deserve Better?

When is is appropriate to "make a deal" with a serial killer? If it brings closure to the victims' families is it worth it? Prosecutors have apparently made a deal with an evil man. Scott Kimball is leading investigators to bodies of people he apparently murdered in exchange for immunity from prosecution. Yes, that's what apparently is happening out in Colorado.

Partly mummified bones believed to be of Terry Kimball, Scott's uncle, were discovered Monday in a remote Rocky Mountain pass near Vail, Colorado. DNA and forensic testing will be used to confirm that the body is correctly identified and to determine the cause of death. Terry Kimball is believed to be one of several suspected victims associated with Scott Kimball. In 2008, Scott Kimball began serving a 48-year sentence in state prison in Fairplay, Colorado, on theft and habitual criminal convictions. Kimball also has a 70-month federal sentence on firearms charges. Kimball's record apparently reveals 18 convictions.

So why won't Kimball be charged with any of the deaths? Apparently, Kimball's December 2008 plea to theft and habitual criminal charges, and the 48-year sentence, was part of a deal that included revealing the locations of murder victims. The plea gave the family of victims the opportunity for some closure regarding their loved one's fate. Furthermore, without Kimball's confession, authorities probably would never have enough evidence to convict Scott of the murders.

It is believed that the 42 year old Kimball described a specific location where he disposed of his 60 year old uncle's body. His uncle was last seen in Scott's presence. But Scott Kimball told his wife that Terry Kimball had won the lottery and run off with a stripper to Mexico. (The Vail Pass where Terry Kimball was found does not even remotely resemble Mexico. Futhermore, the only stripping that occurred was the stripping of a precious life.)

In March, Scott Kimball got to take a road trip with FBI investigators to southeastern Utah to search for the body of Leann Emry. Emery was 24 when she vanished in 2003 on a camping trip. The FBI found Emry's remains shortly after Kimball returned to jail. Kaysi McLeod (the daughter of Kimball's ex-wife) disappeared in 2003. McLeod was last seen getting a ride to work from Kimball. Her remains were discovered in 2007 in northwest Colorado. Dancer Jennifer Marcum disappeared in 2003. Some believe Kimball killed Marcum and buried her body near Rifle, Colorado. Marcum's remains have yet to be found.

Kimball is no stranger to working with authorities. In 2002 while jailed for writing bad checks, Kimball offered to testify against his cellmate, Steven Ennis, who was suspected in a drug ring. The FBI arranged for Kimball to be released. Thereafter, the FBI paid Kimball as an informant.
Kimball was supposed to provide the FBI information on Jennifer Marcum (Ennis' girlfriend) when she disappeared.

In March 2006 near Palm Springs, California, Kimball was arrested again. Kimball knows how to work the legal system. Does he deserve to be punished further if he murdered his uncle and the beautiful women pictured above?