The Kansas Court of Appeals has vacated the sentence in a Lyon County drug possession case from last year.
Derek Stefan challenged his prison sentence after a conviction for possessing methamphetamine, saying certain state law forces district courts to sentence offenders to drug treatment instead of prison in some cases. Prosecutors did not argue on appeal and the Court of Appeals said Stefan qualified for treatment.
Stefan pleaded no contest last year to meth possession while on parole in another felony case. Based on his pre-sentence investigation report, Stefan asked for probation so he could get treatment and prosecutors agreed, but district court instead sentenced him to 24 months, saying probation violations from a different case and a failed incident of drug treatment led the court to impose a prison sentence instead.
The case has been sent back to district court for resentencing.
