Shepack releases statement per Great Bend bus incident

PRESS RELEASE REFERENCE THE DEVELOPMENTS IN THE

PROSECUTION OF TWO (2) JUVENILES WHO ARE PART OF THE

GREAT BEND HIGH SCHOOL BUS INCIDENTS

            On May 31, 2016, Connor Furrey, age 17, of Great Bend, Kansas, was convicted of a Class “B” misdemeanor battery in Ellsworth County District Court Case 2016-JV-04. Sentencing has been set for 2:00 P.M. on July 5, 2016. Mr. Furrey will remain free on bond until sentencing.

On June 1, 2016, Mr. Furrey’s co-defendant, Alan Matthew Bobbitt, was sentenced pursuant to his conviction for a Class “B” misdemeanor battery. Sentencing was conducted by the Honorable District Magistrate Judge Verle Willey. The sentence was a probationary sentence extending through May of 2017. The sentencing judge noted that this was Mr. Bobbitt’s first conviction for a misdemeanor and that Mr. Bobbitt had previously issued an apology, through social media, to the victim, and that neither the victim nor a spokesperson for the victim appeared at sentencing, notwithstanding having been given notice of the sentencing date and time back in April of 2016. The sentencing judge also took note of a pending civil lawsuit directed at Mr. Bobbitt’s parents which necessarily precluded Mr. Bobbitt from full allocution (i.e. speaking on his own behalf) at his sentencing.

In Ellsworth County District Court Case 2016-CV-17, a lawsuit seeking monetary damages was filed on behalf of L.O., by his next friend (a legal term) against twenty-one (21) named defendants. The suit was filed May 11, 2016. Defendants include the Superintendent of USD #428; the Principal of Great Bend High School; two (2) Great Bend swim team coaches, a bus driver, and members of the USD #428 School Board. Also included as defendants are the parents of certain Great Bend High School students, including the parents of Mr. Bobbitt and Mr. Furrey.

The Ellsworth County Attorney makes no comment about the merits, or lack thereof, of said lawsuit, other than to remind the public that the standards of proof for civil lawsuits and criminal proceedings are vastly different. To compare, a plaintiff in a civil lawsuit can prevail by presenting evidence that is 51% believable. This is called proving a case by a preponderance of the evidence. In criminal cases, the standard for conviction is “proof beyond a reasonable doubt”. Although there are no Kansas cases quantifying “proof beyond a reasonable doubt”, logic would suggest that we are talking about a 98% or 99% or 100% proof of guilt. Thus, persons who may not be convicted, nor even charged in criminal cases, may still face civil liability. Indeed, comparing civil cases to criminal cases is like comparing apples to oranges. 

 Joe Shepack  #11596

 Ellsworth County Attorney