"It's simply the right thing I can do," Mr. Rivera said in Richmond County Superior Court, occasionally choking back tears.

Essentially, Mr. Rivera, 38, announced he wanted to skip the guilt-innocence phase of his trial by pleading guilty and go straight into the penalty phase. Because his trials are death-penalty cases, if he is convicted, juries will hear more evidence to determine whether Mr. Rivera should spend the rest of his life in prison with or without the possibility of parole, or die by lethal injection.

Mr. Rivera said Monday he wants to plead guilty to spare the families of Army Sgt. Marni M. Glista, Tabatha L. Bosdell, Melissa Dingess and Tiffaney Wilson from living through tragedy again; to limit media reports of any salacious details of the women's deaths; and to keep potential killers from learning of the crimes.

He also had a message for others with mental illness, although he never named the condition Monday.

"Struggling with such a sickness alone without professional help or God's pilot ... (you will only) find yourself in virtual hell," he said.

Defense attorneys Peter Johnson and Jacque Hawk already have given notice of the intent to present evidence that Mr. Rivera, while competent to stand trial and legally sane, suffers from a host of mental illnesses, including sex addiction. On Monday, they tried to talk Mr. Rivera out of speaking in court. Mr. Rivera lacks the capacity to understand what is in his best interest, Mr. Johnson said.

"If I were you, I'd listen to them," Judge Albert M. Pickett told Mr. Rivera, who insisted on passing District Attorney Danny Craig a letter and then speaking in court.

What's Next: A tentative trial date of July 8 has been set in Columbia County Superior Court for Reinaldo J. Rivera. He is accused of murder in the June 29, 2000, death of Tabatha L. Bosdell. Her remains were discovered in Columbia County in October 2000.

After his arrest in connection with an Oct. 10, 2000, rape and near-fatal assault on an Augusta teen-ager, Mr. Rivera gave Richmond County and Aiken County sheriff's investigators long, detailed statements concerning that assault; the Sept. 4, 2000, attack on Sgt. Glista, 21, in Augusta; the June 29, 2000, slaying of Ms. Bosdell, 17, whose remains were found in Columbia County; the Dec. 4, 1999, rape and slaying of Ms. Wilson, 17, whose remains were found in Aiken County; and the July 17, 1999, rape and slaying of Ms. Dingess, 17, whose remains were found in Aiken County.

On Monday, Judge Pickett granted the prosecution's request to have Mr. Rivera examined by state mental health experts and instructed the defense attorneys to give prosecutors all reports and writings a defense expert used to reach the opinion that Mr. Rivera suffers from mental illnesses.

Judge Pickett told attorneys on both sides to present written arguments on the question of whether Mr. Rivera can enter a guilty plea.

Mr. Johnson said Monday the only way Mr. Rivera can obtain a "guilty but mentally ill" verdict is to go through the guilt-innocence phase of the trial.

Reach Sandy Hodson at (706) 823-3226 or shodson@augustachronicle.com.