Don Tollefson rejects plea deal ahead of jury selection

DOYLESTOWN, Pa. (WPVI) -- Former Philadelphia sportscaster Don Tollefson has rejected one final chance at a plea deal ahead of his trial.

He declined the plea deal on Monday before jury selection was set to begin, after the judge asked Tollefson if he was sure he wanted to move forward with a trial.

Tollefson initially pleaded guilty in the case, but withdrew the plea in mid-December.

On paper, the plea deal would have included seven months in prison, seven months in a recovery hospital for substance abuse and psychological counseling and then seven months in a halfway house.

By rejecting that deal, Tollefson faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted.

He is charged with stealing more than $300,000 by selling fake sports-themed trips that he said would help various charities.

Tollefson is set to represent himself in the trial.

He insisted Monday that his only crime was falling short of his goal to help local charities, especially those that help disadvantaged kids.

"As I look back at my life working with those children, I loved them, it was a passion of mine. I will be able to describe, at trial, what happened," Tollefson said.

Jury selection went ahead on Monday, with 12 jurors chosen. Two alternates need to be picked from a pool of 30, with the trial likely to begin on Tuesday.

"I look forward to my opportunity... to tell my side of the story," said Tollefson.

At the time of his guilty plea, Tollefson's defense attorney, Sharif Abaza, said Tollefson had been sober about a year after battling alcohol and drug addictions for years. Abaza did not agree or recommend that Tollefson withdraw his guilty plea before ceasing to be his attorney.

On Friday, Bucks County Judge Rea Boylin agreed to allow Tollefson to represent himself, with the assistance of court-appointed attorney Robert Goldman.

Goldman said this is all a misunderstanding.

"There's no bad guys in this case, the facts are the facts. What this really is, is a story of how he reached for the stars and fell to the earth."

Tollefson was arrested in February and charged with defrauding at least 200 victims through travel packages to the Super Bowl or other sporting events.

Tollefson took money for nonexistent tickets and claimed some of the money would go to charity, said Matthew Weintraub, chief prosecutor at the Bucks County district attorney's office.

Weintraub said Tollefson booked some legitimate packages but, over time, "the wheels just fell off," and customers had nothing to show for their money.

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The Associated Press contributed to this report.