A teen convicted of murdering his grandmother wants to withdraw the plea that resulted in that conviction, his attorney told the judge in the case.

Jaered A. Long, 18, of Lawrence had been on the verge of being sentenced for second-degree murder.

However, Long’s appointed attorney, Forrest Lowry, said during a hearing Tuesday in Douglas County District Court that he and his client were not prepared for sentencing and asked for another hearing.

“My client has informed me that he wants to try to withdraw his plea,” Lowry said. Lowry said he planned to file a motion requesting the plea be withdrawn.

Judge Kay Huff scheduled Long’s next hearing for Feb. 20, when she plans to consider his request to withdraw the plea and — if that request is denied — sentence him.

Lowry was appointed to Long’s case in June, after Long’s previous appointed attorneys, Branden Smith and Shaye Downing, withdrew citing potential for a conflict of interest. Further explanation was not made public.

Long’s case has now been pending two years. He remains in jail.

Long was arrested in December 2015 after his 67-year-old grandmother, Deborah Bretthauer, was found dead in her apartment 1200 George Court with “obvious traumatic injuries.”

Long, 16 at the time and living with Bretthauer, was originally charged in juvenile court. Huff later granted a motion from prosecutors to try him as an adult for first-degree murder.

Bretthauer had been stabbed with a bread knife dozens of times in her own bed, Lawrence police previously testified. Long told police he didn’t remember arguing with his grandmother or being angry with her.

One of Long’s longtime therapists previously testified that she’d asked Bretthauer to consider residential treatment for her grandson’s worsening abusive and threatening behavior, though Bretthauer ultimately never signed off on such a plan.

In April, days before his murder trial was scheduled to begin, Long pleaded no contest to one count of second-degree murder.

As a part of his plea in the murder case, Long also agreed to plead no contest to two counts of battery on a law enforcement officer that were filed while he was in custody after his arrest.