FORT CARSON, Colo. (AP) -- Lawyers for an Army sergeant charged with premeditated murder concede that he killed another soldier but say the slaying was so brutal and random that it couldn't have been premeditated.

A panel of eight Army officers and enlisted soldiers are now deciding Jackson's fate.

Defense attorneys made the argument during closing statements Thursday in the court-martial of Sgt. Vincinte Jackson. He's accused of stabbing and choking Spc. Brandy Fonteneaux of Houston in January.

Vincinte blames the slaying on a potent mixture of anti-depressants and alcohol.

If convicted of premeditated murder, Jackson could be sentenced to up to life in prison without parole. The minimum sentence for the crime is life in prison with an opportunity for parole in 10 years.