Deal cuts 50-year term

Shooter in Delray was 17 at the time

The shots from Michael Weill Levine’s assault-style rifle rang out three minutes after midnight along a Delray Beach street.

Sitting behind the wheel of a Lincoln, the 17-year-old Levine pumped two rounds through the walls of a house where children were sleeping that 2004 night. They weren’t hurt.

But Levine’s intended target, Cedric Brown, 24, wasn’t as fortunate. He was hit three times as he ran away, collapsing and bleeding from the chin, chest, and left leg. He survived, but needed a metal rod and pins for the leg.

Brown has now given his blessing to a reduced prison sentence and plea deal for Levine, whose original punishment of 50 years is to be cut down to 22 years.

Palm Beach County Circuit Judge Laura Johnson is expected to approve the new sentence on Sept. 29, answering Levine’s long quest for a second chance. After being locked up his entire adult life, the 31-year-old convicted felon looks forward to gaining total freedom before his 40th birthday.

“Michael was so young and immature and lost in life when he committed his crime,” said defense attorney Guy Fronstin, who thanked the State Attorney’s Office for negotiating the new terms.

“Michael is very happy with the deal we reached, because now he will be released as a young adult,” Fronstin added.

Levine wound up with the 50-year sentence after pleading guilty six months after the shooting. He was hoping then