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Tate, killer at 12, asks to withdraw new guilty plea

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Judiciary (system of justice)
Lionel Tate
Crime, Law and Justice

MIAMI, Florida (CNN) -- Lionel Tate, the youngest person in modern U.S. history to be sentenced to life in prison, has asked to withdraw part of a plea deal he entered earlier this month on unrelated charges, his lawyer told CNN on Tuesday.

Tate, now 19, agreed March 1 to plead guilty to one count of armed robbery for holding up a pizza delivery man at gunpoint last year.

But in a handwritten letter to Judge Joel Lazarus, Tate wrote, "I really want to withdraw my plea."

Tate said he was writing after thinking "long and hard" about the matter, telling the judge it "was not explained to me in great detail on what I can and cannot appeal. [I] fight my robbery charge."

Tate wrote, "I know that I can prove to you and to others that I did not commit these crimes I'm being charged with."

Tate wants to maintain his no contest plea to the parole violation, said his lawyer, Ellis Rubin.

The judge was to decide Tate's sentence on April 3. He faces a minimum of 10 years and a maximum of 30 for armed robbery and the parole violation. Tate has been in custody since his arrest May 24.

A hearing has been set for March 31 to hear the arguments on the request, Rubin said.

Florida law allows 30 days for pleas to be changed, but withdrawals are rare, Rubin said.

The sentencing earlier had been delayed after Tate asked for a competency hearing in December, claiming he was hearing voices and threatening to kill himself. A judge ruled that he was competent to face charges after two psychologists testified that he was faking mental problems.

Tate was convicted in 2001 of killing a 6-year-old playmate in 1999, when he was 12, and was sentenced to life in prison without parole.

Tate claimed during his trial in 2001 that he accidentally killed Tiffany Eunick when he imitated wrestling moves he had seen on television.

An appeals court overturned his conviction two years ago because Tate was not given a competency hearing.

Tate then pleaded guilty to a lesser charge and was released on probation.

Since his release, Tate has had run-ins with the law. He was arrested for carrying a knife in a park, and investigators said he also took a gun from his mother -- a highway patrol officer -- and fired a shot into the air.

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