LOS ANGELES >> A retired Los Angeles police detective has pleaded guilty to manslaughter in Hawaii for the 2006 beating death of his wife.

The Los Angeles Times reports that 59-year-old Dan DeJarnette pleaded guilty to manslaughter while under extreme emotional distress March 15. He faces a maximum of 20 years in prison at sentencing.

DeJarnette moved to Hawaii after his 2003 LAPD retirement.

In November 2006, he told police he woke to find his wife Yu DeJarnette lying on a lava embankment near their Big Island home. She was pronounced dead from head trauma at a hospital.

Police believed DeJarnette bludgeoned her with a tire jack. He was arrested at the time, but released for lack of evidence.

The case was reopened last year, leading to DeJarnette’s indictment and arrest.