A judge heard more evidence Thursday about whether a mentally disabled Lawrence man should lose his probation and go to prison for his role in the 2003 statutory rape of a 13-year-old girl.
But Judge Paula Martin did not rule on whether to revoke 29-year-old Michael J. Rayton's probation. He will be back in court Jan. 5 for another hearing.
Probation officers say Rayton committed a long list of violations, including drinking alcohol and staying out past curfew. But Rayton's attorney is arguing that it was impossible for his client to succeed on probation and that mental-health workers and Rayton's case manager didn't do enough to help him.
According to court testimony, Rayton has an IQ between 61 and 75 and functions at roughly a third-grade level.
Martin ordered him to live in a supervised group home as a condition of probation. But there was no space available with local agencies, and after living with his mother briefly, he ended up living at an apartment and at the Salvation Army shelter.
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