Prison sentence replaces probation in Lenexa child rape case

A 22-year-old Overland Park man initially granted probation was sentenced to prison Friday for having sex with an 11-year-old girl in Lenexa.

Steven Paul Bradford, who was 21 at the time of the 2013 crime, was sentenced in Johnson County District Court to seven years and four months in prison after pleading no contest to a charge of rape of a child younger than 14.

Prosecutors recommended a prison sentence of 15 years and six months. But Bradford’s attorneys had asked for a lesser sentence based on several factors, including Bradford’s lack of a serious criminal record and because the girl had misled him about her age. The girl also had misled another young man, who faces charges for having sex with her, according to court documents filed by the defense.

At Bradford’s initial sentencing in November, the judge imposed a prison sentence of eight years and four months but then placed Bradford on probation for three years.

Later that day, prosecutors filed a motion to correct what they said was an illegal sentence. They noted that under Kansas law, a judge cannot grant probation for a person convicted of having sex with a child younger than 14.

On Friday, prosecutors again asked for the 15-year term, but the judge instead imposed the shorter sentence.

Tony Rizzo, trizzo@kcstar.com

This story was originally published December 12, 2014 at 3:28 PM with the headline "Prison sentence replaces probation in Lenexa child rape case."