A judge on Friday granted a plea deal allowing the immediate release of former Buhler debate coach Richard Young, who was serving time in prison for molesting a foreign exchange student.



The Kansas Court of Appeals recently overturned Young�s convictions. Friday�s plea deal will avoid a new trial.



Reno County District Judge Trish Rose followed the plea agreement, sentencing Young to a cumulative 82 months. With good time credit for his time in prison and jail awaiting trial, officials determined Young completed the sentence Nov. 29.



The judge then signed a journal entry, facilitating Young�s release from the Reno County jail, rather than being returned to prison for release.



The victim in the case, now attending school in Boston, was present for the hearing and told the court how he was affected by Young�s actions. He also thanked the Kansas criminal justice system for pursuing the case and convicting Young.



Young, who is 76 and �in poor health,� according to his attorney, David Moses, must register as a sexual offender and be under postrelease supervision for life.



Case history



A Reno County jury convicted Young in October 2008 of two counts of indecent liberties with a child, one count of aggravated indecent liberties with a child, and one count of indecent solicitation of a child after a lengthy trial.



The crimes, occurring in August 2007, involved a 15-year-old South Korean exchange student living with Young, who was a teacher and debate coach at Buhler High School.



The teen suffered a breakdown within a month of arriving in the state and was scheduled to return home. While staying with family in Philadelphia awaiting that return, however, he revealed the allegations against Young, which he testified started within days of his arrival in Kansas.



The Kansas Court of Appeals reversed Young�s convictions on Feb. 3, 2012, finding that prosecutors committed an error by introducing evidence at trial of three other men who testified Young sexually abused them as children. Also introduced were letters Young wrote to the three, apologizing for what he�d done.



Reno County District Attorney Keith Schroeder filed a petition for review with the Kansas Supreme Court in March 2012. That court instructed the lower court to reconsider the appeal in light of another previous Reno County case involving John Prine.



In the Prine case, the appellate court said a jury could only consider evidence of prior sexual crimes if the incidents were �strikingly similar.� After that ruling, the Kansas Legislature amended state statutes to allow introduction of prior sex crimes.



The Court of Appeals amended its ruling in the Young case on Dec. 27, 2013, still finding, however, that the testimony of the three was improperly admitted. It again overturned the conviction and ordered a new trial.



The state again appealed for review by the Supreme Court, but on Oct. 31 the court denied a petition for review. The appellate court then issued its mandate ordering a new trial on Nov. 3.



Plea hearing



At Friday�s hearing, Young, appearing in a long white beard but speaking in a strong voice, pleaded no contest to all four counts in an amended complaint. A no-contest plea means the defendant doesn�t admit guilt, but doesn�t contest the charges.



Young was originally charged with three counts of aggravated indecent liberties, but the jury convicted him on lesser charges of indecent liberties on two of the counts. Prosecutors amended the charges to those lesser counts for the plea.



After Schroeder read off a recitation of facts � which began with Young requesting an unclothed picture of the teen before he even arrived in the U.S. � Rose found Young guilty on all counts.



At his original trial, the jury also found there were aggravating factors allowing the court to depart from state sentencing guidelines and double the maximum sentence to 13 � years.



With Friday�s plea, Rose could not depart. She sentenced Young to 41 months for aggravated indecent liberties, 32 months on each count of indecent liberties and 18 months for indecent solicitation. She ordered the sentences to run consecutively, but under law, Young can receive only double the controlling sentence, for a maximum six years, 10 months.



�I�m limited to the guideline sentence,� Rose advised. �The only deviation I could make is to impose the aggravated sentence on the primary crime, which would increase the sentence by four months. I�ll follow the agreement considering both sides worked hard to avoid requiring (the victim) to testify at a new trial.�



Victim�s statement



The victim, reading from a prepared statement, said he grew up in a middle-class family, but he was unhappy �due to divorce and my school environment.�



�I was excited about the great experience I would have in America,� the now young man said. �I thought it was the land of freedom.�



�Within a few days of arriving, I was sexually abused by Richard Young, the man sitting over there,� he said, pointing at Young. �My life was shattered.�



He became �quite depressed,� and Young used that to get him sent back to South Korea, he said. Before he left, however, he told his family what had happened � resulting in Young�s trial and conviction � and he decided to stay in the United States.



His troubles didn�t end, being placed with �two emotionally abusive families.�



�I faced this stream of turmoil knowing I�d be rewarded at the end of my life with happiness and love,� the youth said. �I concentrated on academics as the only way to survive.�



�My hard work paid off and I�ve been accepted in the graduate program at a prestigious university,� he said.



�I was only a child, lonely and defenseless,� when he arrived in the U.S. �He (Young) took advantage of the system to fulfill his desires. Then he tried to use his status and influence to nullify his actions. I was a teen boy with mental health issues. This was destructive to my self-esteem. Because of what I suffered, I had a life without true friendship and devoid of love.�



�I�m grateful to the criminal justice system in Kansas that found him guilty. There are millions of Americans sexually abused who don�t see their abuser face justice. I thank the agencies that worked hard to convict him and I dedicate my self to better service.�



Young declined the court�s offer to comment before sentencing.