Judge rejects plea agreement in Andrew Jackson case, orders trial date

The presiding judge rejected a plea agreement in the case of Andrew Jackson and ordered the matter set for trial after the judge reviewed the pre‑sentence report and heard that the victim's family preferred trial.

Why it matters: The judge explicitly declined to accept the plea cap negotiated in the agreement—citing the defendant’s criminal history, the content of the pre‑sentence report and victim/family input—and returned the case to the trial docket, which could expose the defendant to a substantially higher sentence if convicted at trial.

On the record, the judge said the plea cap (discussed earlier as an eight‑year cap) appeared low in view of the defendant’s prior record and the facts in the pre‑sentence report. After consulting with counsel and family members present, the judge stated, "I'm not going to accept this plea agreement... I am going to put this on the next available trial docket." The judge told defense counsel and the defendant to be prepared to go forward on the scheduled trial date.

Ending: The court ordered counsel to prepare for trial and notified the parties that the next available trial slot would be used; the judge instructed the defense to stay in contact with counsel about the trial scheduling and preparations.