Fort Lauderdale, Fla. ? The teen whose life sentence for killing a playmate stirred national debate about Florida’s treatment of juvenile criminals pleaded guilty to second-degree murder Thursday, finalizing his release after three years in prison.

Lionel Tate, who was 12 when he beat 6-year-old Tiffany Eunick to death almost five years ago, declined to speak but offered through his attorney to meet with the girl’s mother.

Before the plea, the mother told the court that Tate committed a “brutal murder” but said she forgave him. Tate showed little reaction as he listened to her.

“This was not child’s play. This was not roughhousing. This was a brutal murder,” Deweese Eunick-Paul said.

“I firmly believe in God and I believe in forgiveness. I so much believe in God and for that I have forgiven you, Lionel,” she said.

Eunick-Paul also said she wanted Tate, 16, to publicly acknowledge that her daughter’s death was not an accident.

Tate’s attorney, Richard Rosenbaum, said Tate was remorseful for Tiffany’s death and had looked at her photograph earlier Thursday.

“By entering the guilty plea, Lionel has accepted the responsibility for Tiffany’s death,” Rosenbaum said.

An appeals court threw out Tate’s first-degree murder conviction last month, ruling he may not have understood the proceedings against him four years ago.

Instead of having another trial, prosecutors offered Tate a plea that would sentence him to the three years he has already served.

Tate had claimed he accidentally killed the girl while imitating professional wrestling moves he had seen on television. Tate now says he leapt from a staircase and accidentally landed on her chest.

Tiffany suffered a fractured skull, lacerated liver and at least 35 other injuries.