LARNED — A Larned man who pleaded guilty in January to a charge of trafficking contraband into the Larned State Correctional Facility received a suspended sentence with probation Thursday afternoon in Pawnee County District Court.

Pawnee County Attorney Douglas McNett reported that Jessie Smith II, 52, of Larned was sentenced to a suspended prison term of 32 months and placed him on 36 months’ probation with Court Services supervision. Under the Kansas Sentencing Guidelines, the conviction carried a presumptive prison term of 32 months with the department of corrections based on the severity level of the charges and Smith’s lack of criminal history.

In granting the defendant’s request for probation, District Judge Bruce Gatterman noted the defendant’s behavior while on bond, and that the risk assessment tools utilized in the pre-sentence investigation reflected that Smith did not pose a community safety risk.

Smith had been on supervised bond release since Aug. 17, 2023. He entered a guilty plea on Jan. 18, 2024.

Case history

Smith had been employed as a state correctional officer at LSCF on Aug. 13, 2023 when a random search of employees found him to be in possession of 63 grams of methamphetamine and 252 grams of tobacco. He was arrested without incident following an internal investigation by the Kansas Department of Corrections.

Sentencing hearing testimony

At Thursday’s hearing, Smith apologized for his mistake and requested the Court place him on probation arguing that his mistake has cost him his nearly 30-year career in the security field; that he was pressured by individuals outside the facility to bring the contraband in, and that he did not pose a danger to the public. He also noted ongoing health concerns.

The State argued the Court should deny the request for leniency as the defendant violated the position of trust he had been placed in, and that his actions put the staff and inmates in the facility at risk.

LSCF Warden Timothy Easley testified at the sentencing hearing that his facility experienced only four inmates under the influence of intoxicants in the three months following Smith’s arrest, as compared to nearly 90 such incidents in the preceding three month period.

Warden Easley further testified that the lack of intoxicant-related incidents correlated to significantly fewer acts of violence within the facility.