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McPherson resident Hubert Roger Hartzell, 68, was sentenced Friday to life in prison for raping a girl younger than the age of 14 sometime between July 2009 and April 2010.
Hartzell, who was originally charged with three counts of rape and one count of aggravated indecencies with a child younger than 14, pleaded no contest to one count of rape on Nov. 28, 2011.
The charges against Hartzell stemmed from an incident during which the victim and her sister were visiting their mother in the duplex adjoining Hartzell’s residence. Hartzell fondled the girl while the two children were playing outside. The victim was 6 or 7 years old at the time, subjecting Hartzell to Jessica’s Law and making his case eligible for life in prison.
The victim’s father and grandmother both asked presiding Judge Joe Dickinson to follow the presumed sentence of life in prison.
“If I could have one wish,” the victim’s grandmother said, “it would be that all men like him who hurt children should go to hell together.”
Despite the gravity of the charges against Hartzell, his defense attorney, Michael Llamas, asked Dickinson for a departure from the presumed sentence. Llamas argued Hartzell was emotionally impaired at the time he committed the crime and the defendant’s age made a full life sentence unnecessary.
McPherson County Attorney David Page disagreed, pointing to competency reports that showed Hartzell was “logical and coherent” and possessed an average judgment capacity. Page pointed to a similar case heard by the Kansas Supreme Court in 2011 in which a defendant’s elder age was used as justification for full sentencing rather than a reduction in jail time.
While Hartzell had not been convicted of a sex crime in the past, he did receive a diversion in 1991 for charges of aggravated incest of a child. In that case, Hartzell was accused of inappropriate sexual contact with his grandchild, although he met the terms of his diversion agreement and all charges against him were dropped.
After a recess to consider the arguments of the prosecution and defense, Dickinson sentenced Hartzell to life in prison, the presumed sentence for the crime. Hartzell will not be eligible for parole for 25 years, when he will be 93 years old.
McPherson resident Hubert Roger Hartzell, 68, was sentenced Friday to life in prison for raping a girl younger than the age of 14 sometime between July 2009 and April 2010.
Hartzell, who was originally charged with three counts of rape and one count of aggravated indecencies with a child younger than 14, pleaded no contest to one count of rape on Nov. 28, 2011.
The charges against Hartzell stemmed from an incident during which the victim and her sister were visiting their mother in the duplex adjoining Hartzell’s residence. Hartzell fondled the girl while the two children were playing outside. The victim was 6 or 7 years old at the time, subjecting Hartzell to Jessica’s Law and making his case eligible for life in prison.
The victim’s father and grandmother both asked presiding Judge Joe Dickinson to follow the presumed sentence of life in prison.
“If I could have one wish,” the victim’s grandmother said, “it would be that all men like him who hurt children should go to hell together.”
Despite the gravity of the charges against Hartzell, his defense attorney, Michael Llamas, asked Dickinson for a departure from the presumed sentence. Llamas argued Hartzell was emotionally impaired at the time he committed the crime and the defendant’s age made a full life sentence unnecessary.
McPherson County Attorney David Page disagreed, pointing to competency reports that showed Hartzell was “logical and coherent” and possessed an average judgment capacity. Page pointed to a similar case heard by the Kansas Supreme Court in 2011 in which a defendant’s elder age was used as justification for full sentencing rather than a reduction in jail time.
While Hartzell had not been convicted of a sex crime in the past, he did receive a diversion in 1991 for charges of aggravated incest of a child. In that case, Hartzell was accused of inappropriate sexual contact with his grandchild, although he met the terms of his diversion agreement and all charges against him were dropped.
After a recess to consider the arguments of the prosecution and defense, Dickinson sentenced Hartzell to life in prison, the presumed sentence for the crime. Hartzell will not be eligible for parole for 25 years, when he will be 93 years old.
