A judge has rejected a plea agreement that could have led to manslaughter and all other charges being dismissed against a southern Minnesota man whose gun was picked up by his girlfriend’s 4-year-old son, who then fatally shot his 2-year-old brother.
Martin County District Judge Michael Trushenski on Monday tossed out the deal reached last month between County Attorney Taylor McGowan and the defense for 33-year-old Colton Mammenga of Welcome in connection with the Oct. 15 shooting of Matthew Alshaikhnasser in a moving pickup truck.
The terms of the plea deal reached last month called for the dismissal of two counts of second-degree manslaughter and one count of negligent storage of a gun. In exchange, Mammenga agreed to plead guilty to felony child endangerment.
The deal also called for no jail time, no fines and for the plea to be entered under a stay of adjudication, meaning the conviction would have come off his record after adhering to the terms of his probation. The terms also included him speaking at events about the negligent storage of guns.
However, McGowan told the Star Tribune, “from [the judge’s] perspective, he believed it was too lenient. Now there will be further discussions between the parties to figure something out.”
Defense attorney Christa Groshek said Wednesday that she said during Monday’s hearing that “my client wanted to take responsibility because he didn’t want to shirk the responsibility onto others.”
Groshek added “it’s unclear where we’re headed. We’re trying to talk to the judge in chambers.”
In a letter to the judge before Monday’s hearing, McGowan called this case “one of the most difficult” he has handled as county attorney.