OCALA, Fla., Dec. 9 (UPI) -- A Florida judge has rejected a proposed plea deal for a former teacher who pleaded guilty to having sex with a 14-year-old student.
"The agreement went below the guidelines, and I'm not willing to go below the guidelines," Judge Hale Stancil told CNN in Ocala, Fla., without elaborating.
The trial of Debra Lafave, a 25-year-old former reading teacher, is set for April 10.
Defense attorneys had sought to spare their client a prison sentence, which they were able to do with the plea agreement in Hillsborough County.
Lafave, who taught at Greco Middle School in Temple Terrace, pleaded guilty there on Nov. 22 to two counts of lewd and lascivious behavior.
She faces similar charges in Marion County because one of the alleged sexual incidents took place there.
For the Hillsborough offenses, Lafave was sentenced to three years of house arrest followed by seven years of probation. She also must register as a sex offender.
