ASHEVILLE - Four years after a Buncombe County man was found dead from a gunshot wound in his home, an Asheville woman pleaded guilty to solicitation of his death without admitting guilt, records show.

Carmen Renee Gillespie, 49, of Asheville, submitted what is known as a "guilty Alford" plea Nov. 6 to solicitation to commit first-degree murder, felony breaking and entering, possession of a firearm by a felon, and two drug-related offenses. The plea means she maintains her innocence despite pleading guilty to the offenses.

Gillespie is one of three people charged in the death of Boyce Shane Plemmons, 44, who was fatally shot on Sept. 27, 2021, at a residence on Dryman Mountain Road, just northwest of West Asheville, the Citizen Times previously reported .

Buncombe County Sheriff’s Off

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