Alleged July 4th mass murderer called 'evil and manipulative' after plea deal rejection

June 26 (UPI) -- Accused mass murderer Robert Crimo III on Wednesday refused a plea deal that would have imprisoned him for the rest of his life and instead will go to trial next year.

Crimo, 23, appeared in the Lake County Courthouse in Waukegan, Ill., Wednesday morning while seated in a wheelchair that deputies used to take him into the courtroom.

Prosecutors previously had said they reached a plea deal with Crimo, who they said was to plead guilty to seven counts of murder and 48 counts of aggravated battery in exchange for life imprisonment and a dismissal of all other charges.

But when 19th Judicial Court Judge Victoria Rossetti asked Crimo if he accepted the plea deal, he remained silent.

Crimo's attorneys asked for a brief recess to discuss the issue with Crimo and left the courtroom with him.

After Crimo and his attorneys returned, Rosetti again asked Crimo if he accepted the plea deal.

Crimo said, "No."

Rossetti then scheduled a Feb. 25 date for Crimo's criminal trial to begin and ended the proceeding.

Families of the shooting victims told CNN Crimo is "playing games" with the court and suggested he never intended to follow through on the plea deal.

"He is evil and manipulative and brought us here today probably knowing what he was going to do," Leah Sundheim said.

Crimo's actions in the courtroom showed he is continuing his "reign of terror," attorney Antonio Romanucci told CNN.

"This was a calculated effort on his part to continue the suffering that our clients are going through," Romanucci said.

The attorney represents several of the families in civil suits filed in connection to the mass shooting.

Crimo is accused of shooting and killing seven people and wounding or injuring 48 others during the July 4, 2022, parade attack in Highland Park, Ill.

He is charged with 117 felony counts, including three counts of first-degree murder for each of the seven people he is accused of shooting and killing.

Crimo is accused of hiding on top of a roof overlooking the Independence Day parade route in Highland Park while dressed as a woman and wearing makeup to cover his face and neck tattoos.

After allegedly firing more than 70 rounds into the parade crowd while using a military-style rifle, prosecutors say Crimo exited the roof and blended into the crowd fleeing the shooting site.

Police captured him later that day following a car chase in Lake Forest.

Prosecutors said he admitted to carrying out the attack and said he used two 30-round magazines, loaded a third and continued firing.

The seven people killed that day were Katherine Goldstein, 64; Kevin McCarthy , 37; Irina McCarthy, 35; Jacquelyn Sundheim, 63; Stephen Straus, 88; Nicolas Toledo-Zaragoza, 78; and Eduardo Uvaldo, 69.

An 8-year-old boy was paralyzed after taking a bullet in his back.

Illinois lawmakers abolished the state's death penalty in 2011.

Crimo's father, Robert Crimo Jr., in November pleaded guilty to seven misdemeanor counts of reckless conduct and was sentenced to 60 days in jail, two years' probation and 100 hours of community service.

He was charged because he signed a firearm owner's ID card for his son. He agreed to testify against his son as part of his plea deal.