Print edition: 
The Kansas Court of Appeals today reversed the 2008 conviction of former Buhler debate teacher Richard Young on charges of sexually molesting a 15-year-old student.
The court said that former Reno County District Judge Richard Rome improperly admitted evidence that Young had sexually abused his stepsons about 30 years earlier, and ordered the case return to Reno County for a new trial.
District Attorney Keith Schroeder said he would ask the Kansas Supreme Court to review the decision.
At issue is a 2009 change to a state law governing the admissibility of evidence of a previous crime. In 2009, after Young’s trial, the Kansas Legislature amended the law to allow such evidence in sex offense cases.
The Supreme Court has already agreed to review an Elk County case in which an appeals court ruled that the law could be applied retroactively.
