Jacob Bennett
Brittany MoserCROSSVILLE, Tenn. – The man charged with allegedly killing four young people during a botched marijuana deal on Renegade Mountain has lost the first round in his bid to stay off death row if convicted.
A Cumberland County judge Wednesday denied a defense motion that he accept a blurted admission of guilt Jacob Allen Bennett made in his initial court appearance in September.
His lawyers argued that Bennett’s attempted plea, if accepted, would have limited his range of punishment to life in prison and prevented the state from going after the death penalty.
“That plea of guilty might have been the smartest thing he (Bennett) could do,” said his attorney, Robert Marlow.
Criminal Court Judge David Patterson, however, ruled on Wednesday that Bennett’s proclamation of his guilt on Sept. 20, 2013, occurred before he was given the opportunity to represent himself; that the 26-year-old Crab Orchard, Tenn., man wasn’t properly arraigned at that time; and that as judge, Patterson didn’t accept the plea.