OSCEOLA COUNTY, Fla. – On Monday, the individual accused of sexually assaulting and murdering 13-year-old Madeline Soto is scheduled for a plea hearing, just a day before jury selection was to begin for one of his trials.
Stephan Sterns, 39, initially pleaded not guilty to allegations of killing his former girlfriend’s daughter in February 2024, following years of sexual abuse and creation of explicit material involving the minor.
Sterns’ attorneys filed last-minute notices on Friday related to both of his criminal cases, suggesting a possible change in his pleas. These notices requested a plea hearing on Friday afternoon at 1:30 p.m., occurring less than 24 hours before prospective jurors are to report to the Osceola County courthouse. Prior to this development, Sterns was set to face two separate trials.
Trial attorney Eben Self, who is not involved in the case, explained that Sterns could either plead guilty or no contest in both cases.
[VIDEO: Plea hearing set for Monday in Stephan Sterns case]
“Let’s say the agreement is life in prison without the possibility of parole. Then that would clearly be a reflection of a plea bargain. And it isn’t necessarily a sign of weakness by this state attorney’s office. There’s a lot of reasons why defendants get offered life without the possibility of parole rather than the death penalty,” he said.
“In this case, they’re going to be incredibly gruesome facts and this allows the family not to have to live that in a public forum.”
If Sterns pleads no contest, he will go to prison without admitting guilt, but the judge would have to approve the plea.
[VIDEO: Media coverage rules set for Stephan Sterns’ upcoming trials]
“There are several judges in Orange and Osceola County who don’t accept no contest pleas. In many cases, and even though it’s a perfectly acceptable statutory approved plea, there are still some judges who won’t accept that for certain crimes or just under certain circumstances,” Self explained.
Prosecutors had announced plans to seek the death penalty for Sterns when his murder trial was scheduled later this year.
When asked if Sterns’ attorneys are trying to avoid a death sentence, Self said, “I mean, ultimately, that’s the goal of every criminal defense lawyer who does death penalty cases, is we’re trying to keep our clients off of death row. We’re trying to save their lives, in essence. They think they’ve come up with the best strategy to save their clients’ life. Now we just got to see what that is exactly. It’s going to play all out tomorrow.”
Before the murder trial, prosecutors were planning to try Sterns for sexual battery, with jury selection set to start Tuesday in that case. Self said he is not surprised the plea change is happening just before Sterns faces a jury.
“Oftentimes, good plea negotiations are the result of long-term communications between the defense and the prosecution, and it gets to the point of, now we’re about to go to trial,” he said.
[VIDEO: Interview released with Stephan Sterns after disappearance of Madeline Soto]
Jury selection remains scheduled to begin Tuesday in the sexual battery case. If Sterns is convicted of those offenses, he could be sentenced to life in prison.
Prosecutors and Sterns’ public defender have not disclosed whether a plea deal has been reached or what the terms might be.
The new plea hearing is scheduled for tomorrow at 1:30 p.m.
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