Lawyers for a Massachusetts man accused of crashing his car into a local restaurant last year, killing two people, have rejected a judge's recommended two-year sentence for a guilty plea.
The case against Brad Casler will now go to trial.
Earlier this month, a Middlesex Superior Court judge filed a memo recommending that Casler serve a 2-year prison sentence if he pleaded guilty. He had until Monday to accept or decline the recommendation.
Casler, who suffers from multiple sclerosis, is charged with two counts of motor vehicle homicide in connection with the deadly crash into a Sweet Tomatoes restaurant in West Newton in March 2016.
The crash killed 32-year-old Gregory Morin of Newton and 57-year-old Eleanor Miele of Watertown and injured seven others, including three who were seriously injured.
Casler's attorney Thomas Giblin has said previously that his client's MS played a factor in the crash.
He said his client was willing to plead guilty, but wanted to avoid jail time because he is not likely to handle "the rigors of incarceration" based on his condition.
The judge's recommended sentence would have shaved off three of the five years recommended by prosecutors.
A change of plea hearing has been scheduled for Dec. 22 at 2 p.m.
