‘Monster in the dark’ sentenced to 19 months probation following plea agreement

A man who was originally charged with raping his 17-year-old stepdaughter was sentenced on Friday to 19 months of probation after reaching a plea agreement with the district attorney’s office.

The 55-year-old Lawrence man reached the agreement with prosecutors in February, pleading guilty to one count of attempted aggravated battery, a level-6 felony, and two counts of incest with a person over the age of 18, a level-10 — or very low-level — felony.

Based on Kansas sentencing guidelines, those charges carry a combined maximum penalty of 33 months in prison. But because of the man’s clean criminal history, he qualified for presumptive probation. Any variance from state guidelines requires a judge to justify the departure with substantial and compelling reasons. If convicted of his original charges, he would have faced more than 12 years in prison.

In court Friday, defense attorney Mark Hartman told Douglas County District Court Judge Kay Huff that he was certain the defendant would comply with the conditions outlined in his sentence.

“I’m confident in his abilities on probation,” Hartman said.

Senior Assistant District Attorney Seth Brackman read a statement from the victim, who came to the courthouse but chose not to appear during the sentencing hearing. The statement included details alleging abuse that occurred over a long period of time during the defendant’s marriage to the girl’s mother.

“The defendant stole everything from me,” Brackman read. “He took my childhood, my home, my virginity, and my innocence. How could you claim me as your kid when you were the monster in the dark?”

The statement also mentioned the broken relationship between the girl and her mother, who remains married to the defendant. In her message to the court, the victim said her mother had “slut shamed” both her and her sister as they were growing up.

“You disrespected my mother in the worst way, and you stole my mother’s love,” she said in her statement. “Mom, you taught me to be honest, so why did you shame me? My sister and I needed you.”

Defendants may address the judge at sentencing, but they are not required to. Asked if he’d like to speak, the man said “I don’t have anything to say, no.”

The man was first charged in March 2021 with one count of rape of a person who cannot give consent because of intoxication from alcohol or drugs, a level-1 — or very severe — felony. He was charged in the alternative with aggravated incest of a person older than 16 but younger than 18, a level-3 felony.

For someone with no criminal history, a conviction for rape could have resulted in a sentence of up to 13 years and nine months in prison. An aggravated incest conviction carries a penalty of up to five years and one month of incarceration. Either prison sentence would have been followed by 36 months of post-release supervision.

According to the terms of the plea agreement, as part of his probation the defendant will be required to successfully complete and abide by the recommendations made of a sex offender evaluation. He will also undergo drug/alcohol and mental health evaluations, and a cognitive skills class added to the list by Huff during sentencing. The defendant was not required to register as a sex offender.

The plea agreement did not include restitution, but the defendant will be required to pay court costs, data fees, and $400 for the KBI lab to collect his DNA. He is no longer allowed to possess or purchase a firearm, and he is to have no contact with the victim. He will be eligible to seek an expungement of his record three years after his sentence is complete.

The man will only serve time in prison if he violates his probation. If that happens, he would face an underlying sentence of 33 months in prison, followed by two years of post-release supervision.

The victim, who said in her statement that she is expecting her first child in August, intends to move on with her life.

“This degraded me from the time I was 3 years old on, but life goes on,” she said. “I won’t let my life be changed by someone who made me feel worthless.”

Hartman declined to comment for this article. Brackman referred questions to the DA’s spokesperson, who did not respond to questions about the plea process by publication time.

The Lawrence Times is not naming the man, even though he has been convicted, to protect the victim-survivor and her family.

Andrea Albright (she/her), reporter, can be reached at aalbright (at) lawrencekstimes (dot) com. Read more of her work for the Times here. Check out her staff bio here.

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