Trinadie Xavier Lopez, the suspect in last year’s street shooting in Cortez, on Tuesday was given a plea hearing date after a monthslong series of court proceedings.
During Tuesday’s hearing to set a trial date, Chief Judge Todd Plewe set the date of the plea hearing to Aug. 27 at 2 p.m., giving defense counsel a few more weeks to go over the plea.
According to District Attorney Christian Hatfield, the general terms of the plea deal include a cap of six years in the Department of Corrections, but Plewe noted that the plea could be remanded.
Hatfield also said Plewe may request a presentence investigative report that would push sentencing back a few months.
A jury trial has not been scheduled. Originally, the trial was scheduled for late July or early August, but the dates were vacated after Lopez acquired a new attorney in May.
Lopez’s attorney, Kent Pace from The Firm of Pace and Little in Durango, will present the potential plea deal to Plewe on Aug. 27.
Lopez turned himself in to police in October.
Others arrested in connection with the shooting at West Empire and North Market Streets have been released. The DA’s office has said Lopez most likely fired the gunshot that injured Josilyn Mark on Sept. 15. The shot allegedly targeted Noah Farrar.
During a news conference after the shooting, Cortez Police Chief Vernon Knuckles said Mark nearly bled to death before officer Kristin Cannon assisted her. Mark was flown to a hospital in Grand Junction, and her leg was saved from amputation.
Mark returned to Cortez to recover, her grandmother Eve Martinez said in October.