Plea Bargain Rejected in General Dynamics Shooting

A plea bargain offered to a fired General Dynamics worker who is facing retrial in the killing of a labor negotiator has been rejected.

The offer, under which Robert Earl Mack would have pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and attempted second-degree murder, was rejected during a closed-door hearing Tuesday, defense attorney Michael Roake said.

The plea bargain was an effort to ensure that Mack would spend a minimum of 18 1/2 years in prison, attorneys on both sides said. The two charges and related allegations carry a sentence of 32 years to life.

Mack fatally shot a General Dynamics labor negotiator, Michael Konz, 25, during a shooting spree Jan. 24 at the aerospace firm’s Lindberg Field facility. Mack’s former supervisor, James English, 52, was severely wounded.

Prosecutors originally sought a sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole after charging the fired worker with the special-circumstance allegation of lying in wait. But that charge was thrown out by a Superior Court judge.

A mistrial was declared in Mack’s trial in July when a jury deadlocked on first-degree murder charges. Mack had testified that he blacked out just before the shooting.

Roake said he rejected the offer on behalf of his client “because I would like to see him get out of jail before his 60s.” Mack would have been eligible for parole in 2011.

Deputy Dist. Atty. Robert Sickels made the offer to Mack during a closed-door hearing with Superior Court Judge Richard Murphy, who presided over Mack’s trial.

“We realize that a lot of first-degree murder cases end up as second-degree cases as compromises, and we want to avoid another hung jury,” Sickels said.

“There is nothing wrong with the case,” he said.

Roake said he is seeking a guaranteed prison term of about 12 years.

The retrial in the case is scheduled for Oct. 26. Attorneys will meet again Oct. 16 for further negotiations.