NORTH MIAMI, FLA. (WSVN) - A North Miami Police officer who shot an unarmed behavioral therapist during a stand off has rejected a plea deal.
Officer Jonathan Aledda appeared in court Monday to enter a plea for his misdemeanor charge of culpable negligence.
Prosecutors wanted Aledda to plead guilty to the charge, receive one year of probation and lose his police certification, but he refused.
They brought the deal forward to try and prevent a new trial. The state attorney believed the deal was fair.
“He would be adjudicated. There would be no jail time,” a prosecutor said. “He would be sentenced to one year probation, and as a condition of his plea, he would give up his court certification such that he could not be a police officer in the state of Florida anymore.”
The judge asked, “Have you reached a decision on whether or not to accept that offer?”
“We reject the offer,” Aledda replied.
The charge stems from the case in which he shot Charles Kinsey, a behavioral therapist, in 2016.
Aledda’s attorneys told the judge the officer was the one who chose to reject the deal.
“We discussed it thoroughly,” his attorney said. “He made his decision.”
Cellphone video taken just moments before the shots were fired showed Kinsey laying on the ground with his arms in the air.
He was heard telling officers that his client with autism was holding a toy truck.
“When they pulled up, I see them jump out of the car, trunks popped open, and they went to the trunks and pulled out assault rifles,” Kinsey said in the March trial.
A jury acquitted Aledda of a culpable negligence charge in March 2019.
However, the officer still faces two counts of attempted manslaughter and one count of misdemeanor culpable negligence.
Jury selection for Aledda’s next trial began minutes after he rejected the plea deal.
Lawyers said the selection process could last until June 12.
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