Miami-Dade judge rejects 30-year plea deal for ex-assistant principal accused of killing teacher in 2019

A Miami-Dade judge rejected a proposed plea deal Friday for a former assistant principal accused of killing a teacher who was his lifelong friend, sending the case toward trial following emotional statements from the victim's family.Ernest Joseph Roberts, a former assistant principal at Miami Norland Senior High School, faces a first-degree murder charge in the May 2019 death of Kameela Russell, a Miami-Dade County Public Schools teacher.Under the proposed agreement, Roberts would have served 30 years in prison followed by five years of probation.During Friday's hearing, Judge Alberto Milian asked Russell's mother, Linda Russell, whether she wanted the case to proceed to trial after she addressed the court. When she responded yes, Milian formally rejected the plea agreement.Russell disappeared in May 2019 and was last seen entering Roberts' home. Her body was later discovered in a Miami Gardens canal. The two had known each other for most of their lives, and Roberts served as the godfa