Marissa Alexander, the Jacksonville mother had originally been sentenced to 20 years in prison for firing a warning shot to ward of her abusive ex-husband, has reached a new plea deal. She received a three-year sentence, of which the 1,030 days she already spent in jail will be counted towards. Meaning she could be a free woman in as little as 65 days.
However, the deal is an "open plea," and Alexander could still receive a five-year sentence for a second charge at a hearing in January.
Back in 2010, Alexander's estranged husband, Rico Gray, became abusive towards her just nine days after she had giving birth to their child. Alexander escaped outside and grabbed a gun from her car. Gray continued to verbally threaten Alexander and she shot a warning shot into a wall. No one was injured.
Alexander, however, was arrested on three counts of aggravated assault because her husband and two children were in the room at the time.
Florida's Jeb Bush-signed10-20-Life law meant that because Alexander committed a crime during which a gun was shot she faced a mandatory minimum sentence of 20 years. Instead of originally taking a plea deal, Alexander went to trial and lost. An appeals court vacated that sentence.
State prosecutor Angela Corey (yes, the same one from the Goerge Zimmerman trial) then announced she'd seek three consecutive 20-year-sentences at the retrial. Yesterday, Alexander agreed to take a plea deal.
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