photo by: Kim Callahan/Journal-World

Scott W. Waisner, left, appears with his attorney, Timothy Riling, Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in Douglas County District Court.

A 57-year-old Lawrence man was found guilty Monday of aggravated indecent liberties with a child for a sex crime that occurred 10 years ago.

The man, Scott W. Waisner, pleaded no contest to one count of aggravated indecent liberties with a child between 14 and 16 years old for an incident on March 1, 2014. He at one time faced five counts of the same crime, all dating to 2014 and involving the same child. Assistant District Attorney Samantha Foster noted that the final plea agreement involved “a finding of sexual violence.”

When Judge Stacey Donovan asked the state to provide a factual basis for the plea, Waisner’s attorney, Timothy Riling, quickly stipulated that the evidence from a March 28 preliminary hearing, including testimony from three witnesses, would suffice as a basis for the one-count plea. The stipulation kept the factual basis from being read aloud in court Monday. Waisner’s arrest affidavit had previously been sealed by the court.

Donovan told Waisner that he faces between 55 and 247 months in prison and a $300,000 fine, but because he apparently has little or no criminal history, he will most likely face 55 to 61 months, or 4.5 to 5 years. Donovan scheduled his sentencing for Nov. 20. The state anticipates that multiple witnesses will want to address the court at that time, Foster said.

The court granted Waisner’s request to remain free on his $15,000 bond for the next two months, until his sentencing.

Waisner will be required to register as a sex offender for 25 years.

photo by: Douglas County Sheriff’s Office

Scott W. Waisner