By JAMES BELL
Hays Post
Following criminal mediation, a Victoria resident was found guilty Friday of charges including rape, stemming from an incident in a Hays park in December 2019.
Cody Schultz was first arrested on December 20, following the report of a sexual assault of a 14-year-old victim in Massey Park in Hays on Dec. 16.
That arrest would then lead Hays police to identify him as a suspect in an earlier sexual assault case, dating to March 2014, involving a different 14-year-old.
Now Schultz faces life in prison after being found guilty during a bench trial that began immediately after the conclusion of criminal mediation.
Bruce Gatterman, 24th Judicial District judge in Pawnee County, served as mediator.
“Through that process, we reached a mediated agreement,” said Ellis County Attorney Robert Anderson. “The essentials of that agreement were that we would proceed on both cases, that day, to a bench trial on stipulated facts.”
During a bench trial, facts are presented directly to a judge, who then issues a ruling.
Chief Judge of the 23rd Judicial District Glen Braun presided over the trial, finding Schultz guilty on all charges, including rape, aggravated indecent liberties with a child and electronic solicitation of a child.
Going through the mediation process and bench trial created a quicker — and less painful — outcome, Anderson said.
“From my perspective, it was a chance to clear those cases in an efficient manner without needing to put the victims through the stress and time of two jury trials,” he said. “It also avoids the time and costs that would have come with trying these two cases, which puts a substantial burden on the court and on the citizens called for jury duty. “
But the deal also limited sentencing options, Anderson said.
“In essence, the defendant agreed to waive his right to a jury trial and waive his ability to challenge the evidence,” he said. “In consideration for this, I am now bound at sentencing to request that the sentences for non-primary offenses run concurrent to the primary offense.”
But even with the concurrent sentencing, Schultz could serve the rest of his life behind bars.
“The primary offense has a statutory punishment of (a) life sentence without the possibility of parole for 25 years,” Anderson said. “So, in other words, I’ve given up the ability to ask for years tacked on to the back end of a life sentence.”
Sentencing is expected to be scheduled within the next 60 days.