UTICA, N.Y. (WKTV) - 21 year-old Jamiel Peak was in court Wednesday, facing charges of second-degree murder and criminal possession of a weapon in relation to the shooting death of a man on Rutger Street back in September.

Wednesday in Oneida County Court, Peak rejected the plea offer, which would have meant 20 years to life in prison on the charges of second-degree murder.

Peak is accused of shooting 38 year-old James Johnson multiple times in the chest while Johnson sat in his car outside of the house of his girlfriend on 740 Rutger Street back on September 1.

Police say Johnson was involved in an argument with multiple individuals that evening, and Johnson's family believes that there may have been more than just Peak involved in the killing.

Johnson's girlfriend says that he had been shot that night after an argument with her ex-boyfriend - Julius Peak - who is Jamiel Peak's cousin.

She says the argument occurred when Johnson and she were stopping at he ex-boyfriend's home to pick up her 10 year old son.

She says that argument involved not just her ex-boyfriend, but other individuals, and she thinks those individuals then followed she and Johnson to her Rutger Street home.

It was while in front of her home, as she and her son sat in the car, that she says Johnson was ambushed and shot.

Currently, only Johnson is charged, but prosecutors say the case is still under investigation.

And police say Peak is no stranger to the criminal justice system - that he's already incarcerated for an alleged parole violation.

That violation comes from him being on parole for a robbery in Utica, and giving police a false name when they tried to question him about Johnson's murder.

Peak will return to court for motions on January 21.

And now that he has rejected that plea, he could face 25 years to life in prison if convicted at trial.