'Prom Killer' Could Be Out in Just 13 Years

A Connecticut teen accused of stabbing a classmate to death at their high school for rejecting his invitation to the junior prom pleaded no contest to murder Monday, and prosecutors say they will seek a 25-year prison sentence. Christopher Plaskon, 18, accepted a plea bargain during a brief appearance in Milford Superior Court, the AP reports. Sentencing is set for June 6. Plaskon was charged with killing 16-year-old Maren Sanchez at Jonathan Law High School in Milford on April 25, 2014. His family and friends said he became upset that Sanchez turned down his prom invitation.

Plaskon was held at a psychiatric hospital after the stabbing. His attorneys were considering an insanity defense. Plaskon lawyer Edward Garvin said his client suffered from psychosis and called the claim that the stabbing was over a prom rejection "inaccurate." State's Attorney Kevin Lawlor, however, said evidence from several sources pointed to the rejection as the reason for the attack. Garvin said state law would allow Plaskon to apply for parole in 13 years, based on the fact that he was 16 at the time of the killing. Lawlor said the plea bargain was the best result possible in the case. Sanchez was posthumously voted prom queen by her devastated friends. (More murder stories.)