Olympics bomber to avoid death in plea bargain

Eric Rudolph plans to explain how and why he committed a string of deadly bombings starting with a blast at the Atlanta Olympics in 1996 – but not just yet, his lawyer said on the eve of court appearances.

Rudolph, due in court today for twin hearings in Alabama and Georgia where he is set to plead guilty to four bombings, will do the minimum required by law to convince a judge of his guilt: Answering “yes” when asked if he agrees with evidence laid out by prosecutors.