KALAMAZOO (WKZO-AM/FM) — A Hastings woman, who caused a stir in court when she decided to plead guilty but mentally ill in the middle of her murder trial last fall in Kalamazoo, has caused another stir, asking to withdraw that plea.
Theresa Petto claimed in her petition that her lawyer at the time promised her that she would be assigned to a mental hospital and receive treatment, and not be sent to a prison. That tipped the balence in her decision to enter the guilty plea, she now claims.
Judge Alexander Lipsey denied the request, saying that she was fully informed of the consequences of her plea.
The 45-year-old Petto was charged with stalking and then gunning down her ex-boyfriend’s new girlfriend, 25-year-old Rachel Drafta, in the driveway of her parent’s home in Portage in June of 2015.
Petto will be returned to the Huron Valley Correctional Facility where she is serving life without chance of parole. She can appeal Lipsey’s decision from there if she chooses.
