Fla. woman in 'stand your ground' case agrees to plea
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Facing a possible 60 years in prison for firing a gun at her estranged husband and his two sons, a Florida woman agreed Monday to a plea deal that effectively ends the 4-year-old criminal case against her.
According to the terms of the plea, Marissa Alexander was ordered to serve three years in prison after pleading guilty to three counts of aggravated assault with a weapon in the 2010 shooting. Alexander will get credit for the 1,030 days she's already spent in jail.
She will have to spend 65 days at the Duval County Jail. She will be released Jan. 27.
Alexander's case drew national attention, in part because she unsuccessfully tried to invoke a "stand your ground" defense.
During the trial, her attorneys said the "stand your ground" law, best known in George Zimmerman's fatal shooting of Trayvon Martin, was applicable in Alexander's case. A judge threw out her self-defense claim.
In 2012, she was sentenced to 20 years in prison for firing what she says was a warning shot to scare off her allegedly abusive husband during a dispute. No one was hurt.
Alexander's chief attorney, Bruce Zimet, said it was his client who agreed to the deal after it was offered.
"I think from our client's standpoint, she wanted to get this behind her and move on with her life and her family," said Zimet.
Her 2012 conviction was overturned on appeal because of an error in jury instructions.
She was released from jail in November 2013 as she awaited a new trial.
Had the 34-year-old Alexander, of Jacksonville, been convicted of all counts at her second trial in the case — set to begin Dec. 1 — she would have had to serve 60 years because of Florida's minimum-mandatory sentencing rules when a firearm is involved.
Alexander became the focus of anti-domestic violence advocates since she claimed the victim in the case, her estranged husband, Rico Gray, was a serial abuser who attacked her first.
According to Alexander, Gray accused her of having an affair and questioned whether their 9-day-old baby was his. She says she locked herself in the bathroom until he broke through the door and shoved her to the floor. She says she tried to escape through the garage but the door wouldn't open. She retrieved a gun from a car, went back inside and says she fired a "warning shot" after Gray said he would kill her — an account backed by one of his sons. No one was injured.
The plea deal came soon after the judge in the case decided to allow evidence that Gray had abused women in the past.
Jackie Barnard, the spokeswoman for State Attorney Angela Corey, said no one ruling prompted a decision in this case.
"This case was handled like any other case in this office," said Barnard.
Alexander also will have to wear an electronic device to track her movements for two years, though she will be able to lead a fairly normal life, including taking her kids to school and shopping.
The state waived the minimum mandatory 20-year prison sentence under the deal.
The judge will still have the prerogative to sentence her to more time on the third charge, up to five years, which was aggravated assault on a child. Or he could also sentence her to time served.
Contributing: Jessica Durando, USA TODAY Network; The Associated Press.