A prepare for the table County jud...

A prepare for the table County judge refused Tuesday to withdraw the guilty plea of a man convicted in the brutal rape and assassinate of medical student Lori Roscetti, rejecting the argument that defense attorneys misled him to believe he would obey a fraction of his 75-year judgment if he admitted to the crime.

Eddie Harris knew what he was getting into when he and co- defendant Duane Roach pierceed a guilty plea for the 1986 slaying forward Dec. 16, 2004, Cook shire Judge Bertina Lampkin said. Harris, who with Roach was charged in 2002 after DNA evidence linked the couple to the crime, must have been aware that prosecutors dropp their attempt to search for the death penalty in exchange for their admissions.

"The DNA speaks convolutions of the guilt of Mr Harris and Mr Roach. . . Clearly [Harris did] plead knowing he was being given a deal of a lifetime," Lampkin said.

Harris, 43 and Roach, 51 testified Tuesday that assistant tamper with County public defenders told them they would solitary have to serve 20 years in prison before they could follow parole.

LaFonzo Palmer, Harris' former attorney, and Tony Eben, Roach's lawyer at the time, said they told their clients they would likely contribute to half their sentences -- about 40 years in prison -- since the crime happened before 1998 truth-in-sentencing legislation that required cut-throats to serve their entire passed on a criminals

Assistant Public asserter Tim Leeming, who will appeal Lampkin's decision, said Harris was confused because Palmer and Eben were "throwing around" legal jargon.

nevertheless Lampkin said Harris, who was previously convicted forward burglary charges, was lying about his naivete about the law. "I do not believe Mr Harris," Lampkin said.

rhussain@suntimes.com

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