Guilty Plea in Drug Overdose Death of Little Falls Man
LITTLE FALLS -- A Little Falls man has pleaded guilty to one count of 3rd-degree murder in the overdose death of another man. Twenty-five-year-old Jerad Whitford pleaded guilty Wednesday after the Minnesota Court of Appeals reinstated murder charges against him.
Whitford is among three defendants charged with providing heroin to Travis Scherping of Little falls who died of an overdose.
Morrison County Judge Douglas Anderson previously dismissed the charge against Whitford last August. The Morrison County Attorney's Office appealed and had the decision reversed.
As a result, Whitford agreed to a plea agreement on the charge and will testify against co-defendant Jason White at his upcoming trial. A previous trial against White ended in a hung jury. Another co-defendant, Callie Statema has already pleaded guilty to 3rd-degree murder and will be sentenced Friday.
The Morrison County Sheriff's Office says Statema gave Whitford $450 in June 2016 to buy the heroin from White and then Statema then sold it to Scherping.
As a result of the plea agreement, Whitford will be sentenced to five years in prison following his testimony at White's trial later this summer.
More From AM 1240 WJON
![Minnesota Prepper Expo Kicks Off Today in Little Falls](http://townsquare.media/site/66/files/2024/06/attachment-Untitled-design-17.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![The Minnesota Prepper Expo in Little Falls is Near!](http://townsquare.media/site/66/files/2024/06/attachment-Untitled-design-15.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![The Minnesota Prepper Expo is Just a Few Weeks Away](http://townsquare.media/site/66/files/2024/06/attachment-Untitled-design-10.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![3 Things Minnesota Drivers Should Know About Military Convoys](http://townsquare.media/site/65/files/2024/06/attachment-GettyImages-1176889789.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![The Truth About the Doomsday Prepper Convention in Little Falls](http://townsquare.media/site/66/files/2024/03/attachment-darklabs-india-YWR1X-P_bXg-unsplash-e1709305376765.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![Boomerang In Little Falls Gets A ‘Makeover’ In Time For The Holidays](http://townsquare.media/site/65/files/2023/12/attachment-Boomerang-Bar.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![Central Minnesota Cemetery Hosting Annual Wreath Laying Event](http://townsquare.media/site/67/files/2023/12/attachment-2022-12-20-wreaths_tcm1066-552791.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![Little Falls Man Killed in Workplace Accident at Firewood Plant](http://townsquare.media/site/67/files/2021/07/Emergency1.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![Central Minnesota Museum Honoring Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day](http://townsquare.media/site/67/files/2022/12/attachment-GettyImages-157925311.jpg?w=980&q=75)