The attorneys for a Lawrence teenager convicted of murdering his grandmother in 2015 withdrew from his defense Monday, which was the day he was scheduled to be sentenced for that and other crimes.

Citing the potential for a conflict of interest, Douglas County District Court Judge Kay Huff granted a motion by court-appointed defense attorneys Branden Smith and Shaye Downing to withdraw from representing Jaered Long, 18. The decision came after Huff met privately for a few minutes with Long and the two attorneys. The nature of the potential conflict was not made public.

In granting the motion, Huff said Long’s sentencing was off the calendar for Monday anyway because of a condition in his April 13 plea agreement that led to his convictions. That condition requires that he be evaluated at Larned Correctional Mental Health Facility for his suitability to serve time in that institution rather than in a state prison, but that evaluation has not yet occurred. Why the evaluation hadn’t taken place was not clear at Monday’s hearing.

Jaered Long

On April 13, Long pleaded no contest to one felony count of second-degree murder and to two felony counts of battery of a law enforcement officer. The battery convictions stem from altercations with correctional officers after he was taken into custody.

He could face a maximum of more than 54 years in prison for the second-degree murder conviction of his 67-year-old grandmother, Deborah Bretthauer, and more than 11 years in prison for each of the two battery convictions. He is currently being held in the Douglas County Jail.

Huff said she had a defense attorney in mind to replace Smith and Downing but had not yet contacted that attorney. She added that she would intercede to get Long’s Larned evaluation scheduled.

Long was arrested in December 2015 after Bretthauer was found stabbed to death in the apartment at 1200 George Court that she shared with Long, her then 16-year-old grandson. Long was originally charged in juvenile court, but Huff granted a January motion by prosecutors to try him as an adult for first-degree murder. The plea agreement reduced the charge to second-degree murder.

Also as a part of his plea in the murder case, Long agreed to plead no contest to the battery charges. He also agreed that the battery charges would be moved to adult court, even though he was originally charged as a juvenile.

During a hearing in September 2016, then-Lawrence Police Detective Jack Cross — who has since retired — testified that Bretthauer had been stabbed with a bread knife dozens of times in her own bed.