DENVER -- A drug-addicted surgery tech who admitted stealing painkillers and infecting patients with hepatitis C will face more prison time.

Kristen Diana Parker renewed her guilty plea Friday before a federal judge. Parker had already pleaded guilty in an agreement with prosecutors that would have sent her to prison for 20 years. She's accused of exposing thousands of patients to hepatitis C at Rose Medical Center in Denver and Audubon Surgery Center in Colorado Springs.

U.S. District Judge Robert Blackburn rejected Parker's plea agreement last month, and said 20 years was not enough prison time. The plea deal rejection meant that Parker could have changed her mind on pleading guilty.

"Her motivations were to continue to accept responsibility," said Parker's attorney Gregory Graf. "From the legal standpoint, there was really no option to go to trial once the prosecution had released statements made by her, as part of the plea agreement process, to the press. Those statements were played publicly on all the major networks and the national networks as well."

Graf told 7News his motivation for keeping the guilty plea is based on his belief the jury pool was tainted with the release of Parker's video admission to investigators.

"It's tantamount to prejudicing the jury panel," said Graf. "What chance would Kristen Parker have to a fair trial at this point in time? From my analysis of this case, the only option was to persist in her guilty plea. Kristen Parker's motivation is quite differently, which is 'I'm accepting responsibility for my actions.'"

Parker will be sentenced on Feb. 24. Victims will have a chance to speak before the judge gives Parker her sentence.