Larned Man Appears in Court Following March Arrest

LARNED, Kan.  – Caleb Cushman, 37 of Larned, Kansas, appeared in the custody of the Pawnee County Sheriff Wednesday afternoon for felony sentencing before Pawnee County District Judge Bruce Gatterman.

Cushman was arrested on the evening of March 23, 2026, after deputies were dispatched to a domestic situation in progress at a rural residence South of Larned. Upon arrival, deputies encountered multiple individuals outside the residence. Family members advised they could hear the couple fighting in a bedroom and intervened when they saw Cushman attempt to drag the victim back into the bedroom when she tried to flee. The defendant entered a No Contest plea on July 23, 2026, to Attempting Kidnapping, a severity level 5 person felony, and Aggravated Domestic Battery, a severity level 7 person felony.

Based on the defendant’s lack of prior criminal history, the Attempted Kidnapping conviction scored as a “border box” under the Kansas Sentencing Guidelines. Border Box offenses carry presumptive prison sentences, but a court may grant a non-prison sanction if it finds (A) An appropriate treatment program exists which is likely to be more effective than the presumptive prison term in reducing the risk of offender recidivism; and (B) the recommended treatment program is available and the offender can be admitted to such program within a reasonable period of time; or (C) the nonprison sanction will serve community safety interests by promoting offender reformation.

During the allocution portion of the hearing wherein Defendant’s are allowed to make statements to the Court prior to sentencing, Cushman requested the Court allowed him to go to treatment. The defendant expressed remorse and stated the offense occurred due to his alcoholism and overwhelming stress he was under as a result of the family’s financial struggles. He also stated the past six months in jail has made him realize he needs help and that his actions have caused him to lose his family.

The State requested the Court deny the request due to the brutality of the attack and the injuries his wife suffered.

Following hearing statements from the parties, Judge Gatterman found that while a treatment program was available, a nonprison sanction did not serve community safety interests as there needed to be consequences for his actions to reduce the risk of recidivism. Gatterman then sentenced Cushman to 32 months with the Kansas Department of Correction (KDOC) for the Attempted Kidnapping and an additional 12 months to be served consecutive for the Aggravated Domestic Battery conviction. The defendant remains in the custody of the Pawnee County Sheriff pending his delivery to KDOC to begin serving his 44 month cumulative sentence. He will also be subject to lifetime offender registration as a violent offender pursuant to the Kansas Offender Registration Act.

Under Kansas Law, “Aggravated Domestic Battery” means knowingly impeding the normal breathing or circulation of the blood by applying pressure on the throat, neck or chest of a person with whom the offender is involved or has been involved in a dating relationship or a family or household member, when done in a rude, insulting or angry manner.

In other matters before the Pawnee County District on Wednesday, Landon Jay Ellis, 21 of Garfield, Kansas, entered a No Contest plea to Aggravated Sexual Battery of an unconscious person, a severity level 5 person felony. The crime involves a single incident alleged to have occurred at a residence in Garfield, Kansas during the early morning hours of August 22, 2026. The Pawnee County Sheriff’s Department handled the investigation. Ellis was arrested August 24, 2026, without incident and has been held in the custody of the Pawnee County Sheriff in lieu of $250,000 bond since the time of his arrest.

Following a finding there was a factual basis to support the plea, and that the plea was freely and voluntarily made, Judge Gatterman found the defendant guilty and ordered the defendant to register as a sexual offender under the Kansas Offender Registration Act.

The parties announced that Ellis does not have any prior criminal history and they anticipate he will fall within a Border Box. After reviewing the new statutory bonding requirements, the Court found that the defendant does not pose a flight risk, nor does he currently pose an inherent community safety risk and granted the defendant’s request for a supervised bond release pending sentencing. A presentence investigation report was ordered to include a sexual offender evaluation. Sentencing is scheduled for November 19, 2026.

All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty.