Quinton “Rampage” Jackson accepted a plea bargain Thursday morning in an Orange County courthouse in regards to a high speed chase that occurred this past summer.
Prior to accepting the plea bargain, Jackson had originally pleaded “Not Guilty” and had been facing four misdemeanors of hit and runs and reckless driving, as well as two felony counts for evading officers and evading while driving recklessly. The incident occurred on July 15th, 2008; ten days after losing his title to Forrest Griffin.
The Oragne County District Attorney’s office released a statement regarding Jackson’s plea.
Quinton Ramone Jackson, 30, Irvine, also known as Quinton “Rampage” Jackson, pleaded guilty to one felony count of evading a peace officer and driving against traffic and one misdemeanor count of driving recklessly. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 7, 2010
According to the release, Jackson could still face jail time based on the language of the plea bargain.
Based on the negotiated plea agreement, the defendant could receive up to six months in jail and probation at his sentencing. Prior to sentencing, Jackson is required to complete 200 hours of community service, attend mental health therapy, pay restitution, and comply with other terms and conditions
This is the official statement given to PRO MMA (http://promma.info) from Quinton Jackson’s lawyer, Carol Lavacot:
Quinton’s decompensation on July 15, 2008 was precipitated by multiple factors interacting with one another. None of these factors included drugs or alcohol. Extensive testing by a psychiatrist, psychologist and a neuropsychologist revealed no evidence of trauma to Quinton’s head. It is the opinion of his doctors that Quinton suffered a brief episode of delirium which was reactive to situational and metabolic difficulties. His prognosis is good and Quinton is expected to do well. He is learning to manage the stressors in his life and has been working with a nutritionist to maintain his physical as well as his mental health.
Today, Quinton entered into a plea agreement that was fashioned to place more time between the incident and a resolution. The agreement is analogous to a deferred entry of judgment in that the plea to Count 2, evading a peace officer and driving against traffic, will be withdrawn and dismissed at the end of one year if Quinton’s doctors are assured that he has maintained good physical and mental health and he has complied with the other terms of the agreement. He will be seeing his doctors regularly with bimonthly reports provided to the District Attorney. He will also perform 200 hours of community service which will be designed to reach as many young people as possible.
Quinton from the beginning has wanted to take responsibility for his actions. He has learned a great deal about his physical body and about mental health. During this next year, Quinton has chosen to share his knowledge of how good nutrition, exercise, and sufficient sleep leads to success. He will be speaking to groups of young people in the hope that his unfortunate incident can be turned into something positive for others.