SANDPOINT — A binding plea agreement could resolve a first-degree murder case against a Washington state man accused of stabbing a cab driver to death in Bonner County.

Jacob Corban Coleman was scheduled to stand trial in 1st District Court this spring for killing Gagandeep Singh, although a change-of-plea hearing has been set for Nov. 9.

Bonner County Prosecutor Louis Marshall said the state has agreed to stop pursuing the death penalty in exchange for a plea to first-degree murder.

The agreement being considered would be pursuant to Idaho Criminal Rule 11, an agreement that would be binding on all parties, including the court. It would essentially guarantee a sentence in the case.

Marshall said the agreement is still being finalized and proposed terms of confinement were not disclosed on Friday.

“There will be some sentencing parameters, but the Rule 11 hasn’t been signed yet,” Marshall said in an email.

If the court declines to bind itself to the agreement, Coleman would be free to rescind his guilty plea and proceed to trial.

Coleman, a 21-year-old from Puyallup, is accused of repeatedly stabbing Singh, 22, inside the man’s minivan taxicab on Aug. 28, 2017. Coleman hailed the ride at Spokane International Airport and directed Singh to Hope, according to court documents. While en route to the destination, Coleman had Singh stop at Walmart in Ponderay, where the knife that was used to kill Singh was purchased.

Singh was stabbed more than 20 times while the van idled in Kootenai. Singh bled to death while Coleman remained in the van, neither rendering aid or summoning for help, court records indicate.

The state put the defense on notice that it would seek the death penalty due to the atrociousness of the attack and the indifference toward human life.

R. Keith Roark, one of Coleman’s defense attorneys, argued the death penalty should be stricken in the case because Idaho’s lethal injection methods amounted to cruel and unusual punishment. The defense further argued that Coleman, who was 19 at the time of the attack, was too young to be put to death.

Keith Kinnaird can be reached by email at kkinnaird@bonnercountydailybee.com and follow him on Twitter @KeithDailyBee.