Douglas County prosecutors have dismissed drug charges against a 32-year-old Lawrence man.

Charges of possession with intent to distribute marijuana, possession of drug paraphernalia and distributing or possessing marijuana as a dealer without a drug tax stamp against James F. Auten were dropped Tuesday.

District Attorney Charles Branson said prosecutors dismissed the charges because they now believe there is insufficient evidence to prove Auten intended to possess the marijuana on June 29. They could re-file charges later because the case was dismissed without prejudice.

Auten was listed as a Kansas University student at the time of his January arrest. He has been on parole since October 2010 after he was sentenced in 2006 to serve a 65-month prison sentence for entering a plea to aggravated sexual battery, aggravated battery and aggravated assault charges. In that case a female acquaintance alleged he raped her, stole her phone and held her in a bedroom at knife-point. He also had a case dismissed around the same time after he was accused of calling in a bomb threat at The Granada, 1020 Mass.