HUTCHINSON, Kan. (AP) A Hutchinson man was sentenced to two years of probation for his role in burglaries at four churches and attempting to burglarize a fifth.
A judge departed from state guidelines while sentencing 24-year-old Justin Branscom, who was also ordered to apologize to each church and pay more than $3,000 in restitution.
Branscom’s probation through Community Corrections won’t start until he finishes serving a two-year prison term for previously violating probation in a 2008 arson at a jewelry store in Hutchinson.
The Hutchinson News reports Reno County District Attorney Keith Schroeder asked the judge to sentence Branscom to the maximum sentence of 38 months.
A 16-year-old co-defendant was granted probation after pleading guilty to 14 burglaries. Another received probation for five burglaries and a fourth is awaiting trial.
