Activists line up help to ease Lionel Tate back into society.(South Florida Sun-Sentinel)

Byline: Paula McMahon

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. _ Lionel Tate, the youngest American ever sentenced to life in prison, will have a lot of people ready to help him ease back into society when he accepts a plea agreement and is released, probably at the end of this month.

"It's going to be a lot of pressure on Lionel and on his mother by herself, so we are all working together to put a support team in place," said The Rev. Dennis Grant, of Margate, a longtime activist who has helped many young convicts.

Tate was 12 when he was charged with beating 6-year-old Tiffany Eunick to death in July 1999.

He will meet with his mother in the next few days to sign off on the formal plea agreement drawn up by Broward prosecutors, his attorneys said Thursday.

Tate, now 16, will plead guilty to second-degree murder in exchange for three years in prison, most of which he has already served. He will also do a year of house arrest, 1,000 hours of community service and ten years of probation.

"He was excited and even more anxious to get out and get on with having a productive life," said Tate's attorney, Richard Rosenbaum, after speaking by phone with Tate on Thursday.