A fairly rare event occurred in a LaPorte County courtroom this week.
21-year-old Charles Gerron had a plea deal in place where he’d plead guilty to a lesser charge of criminal recklessness instead of murder. Instead, a judge rejected that plea deal and ordered Gerron to go to trial on September 18.
17-year-old NeKeisha Hodges-Hawkins was shot and killed in 2011 at a party in Michigan City. The case went cold for a few years until charges were finally filed against Gerron in 2016.
Had the plea deal gone through, Gerron would have been given an eight year sentence. That included one year in LaPorte County Jail, five years in the LaPorte County Work Release Facility, and the last two years on probation.
A statement from the LaPorte County Prosecutor’s Office seemed to indicate that evidence in the case pointed away from murder and towards criminal recklessness, and that opened up plea negotiations with Gerron.
The victim’s father told ABC 57 that he won’t stop fighting until justice is served for his daughter.
