Terry Rose pleaded guilty in open court to a 1999 murder indictment, telling the judge he was entering his plea freely and voluntarily. The court took judicial notice of a prior competency evaluation and found Rose competent to enter his plea.

Judge: "This is not a game," the judge said during the plea colloquy, stressing that the court would only accept a plea if the defendant understood the paperwork and had taken full responsibility. Defense counsel told the court he intended to call several witnesses at sentencing and said he might ask the judge to consider facts relevant to a sudden-passion finding as part of mitigation. "I will be calling several witnesses," the attorney said.

Why it matters: Rose's plea resolves a decades-old homicide charge without a jury verdict, shifting the next phase to sentencing. The court reset the case for a multi-hour sentencing hearing on Tuesday the 16th and ordered the probation department to prepare a pre-sentence report to inform the judge's determination of punishment.

What the court ordered: The judge accepted Rose's guilty plea, found sufficient evidence to support the conviction and confirmed Rose waived certain appellate rights by signing trial-court certifications. The court set a date for sentencing in the afternoon of the 16th and allocated at least three hours for presentation of sentencing evidence, including witness testimony and the PSI. The judge noted that if Rose and his defense sought a legal ruling (for example, a sudden-passion determination that could reduce the offense level), the court would need testimonial evidence to make such a finding.

Next steps: Probation will complete a pre-sentence interview and report; counsel and the defendant were instructed to coordinate with probation for timely completion. The judge signaled readiness to proceed promptly at the scheduled sentencing hearing and warned parties to notify the court if more time is needed.