A former Stamford police officer has rejected a plea deal that called for him to spend two years in prison in connection to a crash that killed a beloved local pastor. Zachary Lockwood, 26, is charged with misconduct with a motor vehicle in the death of the Rev. Tommie Jackson, 69, who Lockwood hit while responding to a call. The felony charge carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison. Lockwood appeared in Milford Superior Court Wednesday afternoon with new representation, Attorney Michael Fitzpatrick, and told the judge he was opting to go to trial rather than take the offer. "The case is a tragedy on many levels, but not every tragedy makes for a crime," Fitzpatrick told News 12. "And short of a judge dismissing this case, the only way that Officer Lockwood can really demonstrate that his operation of the vehicle was not improper is to reject the plea bargain and request a trial." The offer called for five years in prison, suspended after Lockwood served two, followed by three years of probation. If Lockwood violated probation, he would face up to three more years in prison. The deal also included the condition that Lockwood couldn't be re-certified as a police officer. "From the very beginning, Officer Lockwood has failed to take responsibility in any manner whatsoever and him hiring a new lawyer and rejecting the state's offer is exactly what we expected," said Attorney Michael Skiber, who represents the Jackson family. Skiber attended the hearing with Dorye Jackson, the reverend's widow, and spoke with News 12 outside the courthouse after. Skiber explained the family didn't think a two-year sentence was enough time, "but an acceptance of responsibility would go a long way to try and give closure to this entire story. It's been almost two years and there hasn't been any outreach, any indication whatsoever that he is sorry for what happened." "We'd like to have some closure so we can move on however we have to move on, and it's not that easy when you have to revisit it and revisit it and revisit it," Dorye Jackson said. On the afternoon of July 26, 2023, Lockwood was in a marked vehicle, heading to a car accident in the city when he drove into Jackson on Wire Mill Road. Jackson had just gone to his mailbox across the street and was walking back to his house at the time. According to Lockwood's arrest warrant, Lockwood and another officer were dispatched to a crash without injuries that included a possible disturbance. They were told to use a "Code 1" response, meaning a non-emergency response with the flow of traffic and no lights or sirens, the warrant said. But Lockwood was recorded on his body camera saying he decided to go "Code 3," the most immediate emergency response with lights and sirens, according to the warrant. "Oh damn, don't go Code 3, go Code 2," the other officer said, according to the warrant. Code 2 calls for lights and sirens only when going through intersections. In Lockwood's warrant, state police concluded he was driving 65 mph at one point and 46 mph when he hit Jackson. The speed limit in that neighborhood is 25 mph. The warrant also said Lockwood had his lights on but was only using his sirens intermittently.

Lockwood was fired from the Stamford Police Department about a year later. Following Lockwood's rejection of the plea offer, the state withdrew it, and the judge placed the case on the trial list. A date still needs to be set.

Lockwood's case was transferred to Milford Superior Court after his arraignment in Stamford due to a potential conflict of interest with Stamford State's Attorney's Office. An attorney representing the Jackson family filed a motion to move it to Bridgeport, but a judge denied the request last year.