Bond hearing set after teen signs plea
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Lionel Tate on February 12, 2003
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(CNN) -- An attorney for the Florida teenager serving a life sentence for the 1999 death of a 6-year-old girl said his client will appear in a Fort Lauderdale court January 26 for a bond hearing after signing a plea deal Sunday.
Richard Rosenbaum said Lionel Tate is likely to be granted bond that day by Broward County Court Judge Joel Lazarus.
Lazarus sentenced Tate to life in prison without parole in 2001 after he was convicted of first-degree murder in the death of Tiffany Eunick, his neighbor.
Tate was 12 at the time of the incident. He weighed 160 pounds; Tiffany weighed about 50.
If bond is granted, Tate would be released under court supervision and return to court January 29 -- the day before his 17th birthday -- for a formal change of plea hearing.
Rosenbaum said Lazarus is expected to ratify the plea agreement.
Under the terms of the bargain Tate signed at the maximum-security juvenile prison in Okeechobee where he is held, he will serve one year of house arrest and a 10-year probation.
In the deal, Tate pleaded guilty to second-degree murder. Throughout his trial, Tate's attorneys said he killed Tiffany by accident while imitating professional wrestling moves he had seen on television.
The 4th Florida District Court of Appeal in West Palm Beach overturned Tate's conviction December 10 and ordered a new trial, ruling that the teen's competency was not evaluated before his trial.
Florida's attorney general asked the appeals court last week for a rehearing about its decision, arguing the issue of competency was never raised before the trial.
While prosecutors weighed whether to seek a new trial, they offered Tate the deal, which was nearly identical to the deal he had been offered -- but turned down -- before his trial.
Tate's mother, Kathleen Grossett-Tate, had objected to the same plea deal when it was first offered to her son. She gave her blessing when it was offered this time.
Tate and his mother, Kathleen Grossett-Tate, at his 2001 trial
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Grossett-Tate, a trooper for the Florida Highway Patrol, said it was the best choice.
"For us to go back to trial again, I know he would not get a fair trial," she said.
Grossett-Tate expressed mixed emotions Sunday about the deal.
"If they could have changed it to manslaughter, then I would have felt better," she said.
Still, she said, her son was looking forward to his release -- "Just getting out the door and into the fresh air."
CNN's Rich Phillips contributed to this report.
