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woman as the 18-year-old victim who was in a relationship with Graf prior to the allegations. She said she was unaware these photos existed.
Schneider and Leitner were unable to comment on the pending court case.
In July 2014, the court held a preliminary hearing for all felony counts of attempted rape, where the victim testified. She told the court she began dating Graf in March 2013 and said they had an on-and-off relationship that ended in November 2013.
Early into the relationship, the
victim said Graf became physically violent. She testified that in one instance, Graf "hit her, dragged her into his room, bound her ankles with tape and threatened to kill her," according to court transcripts.
She took a photo as proof of a black eye "caused by the defendant striking her," court documents state. The photo was retrieved from Graf's phone during the investigation.
Since Graf was arrested during his 16-month probation for 10 counts of breach of privacy,he'll carry out the remainder of his sentence in prison.
Pending Trial
Graf said he felt "pressured" to accept a plea instead of going to trial, according to June 22 court documents. He dismissed his court-appointed attorney, Smith, because, Graf wrote, he was "ineffective" and shared "false information" about parole.
Graf's original trial was set for May, but he took the plea agreement to reduce the charges one week before the planned trial. The charges came in June 2014 when he was arrested on suspicion of two counts of rape while the victim was incapable of giving consent — one count of aggravated assault and one count of felony criminal threat. The victim was 18 years old at the time of the alleged crime and reportedly unconscious, according to records.
He was charged with eight counts: counts 1-3, rape; count 4, aggravated criminal sodomy; count 5, sexual battery; count 6, aggravated assault; count 7, criminal threat; and count 8, battery.
"If he is allowed to withdraw his plea, they are going to set it for a trial or something else down the line. But it'll be some time until [then]," said Jacy Wolfe, criminal/traffic supervisor with the Douglas County district
court. "They haven't resolved anything yet."
The outcome of the motion hearing has not been decided and the trial date was not set.
Graf will return for a court hearing on Sept. 17. He is currently under custody of the Douglas County Sheriff and has been since June 2014 with a $300,000 bond. If convicted, he faces up to 20 years in prison.
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KU to host conference for scientists studying reptiles and amphibians
CHANDLER BOESE @Chandler_Boese
The Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles will rehash old traditions at its annual meeting next week — but it will be the smallest one in about 15 years.
For the past several years, the society has held its annual meeting in conjunction with three other societies. Because it was held at a larger convention center, the cost of attending was more expensive than some students could afford, said Rafe Brown, a University curator and co-chair of this year's hosting committee.
"SSAR is trying something new which is also historical, by holding a smaller meeting and going back to a college campus with a smaller crowd," Brown said. "The idea is to have an intimate and less expensive meeting for students to try to be able to have the experience of one of these meetings."
This year, the conference is being held on the University's campus and only includes around 400 scientists, Brown said. Hopefully, the smaller conference and more affordable lodging — attendees can stay in a hotel or dorm — enable more students to attend.
"By doing this, it enables the society to do a lot of things it hasn't done in a long time, since when I was a young undergraduate," Brown said. "For example, doing things like holding it in conjunction with a live animal exhibit that's being held off campus."
Brown said the plan is to host a smaller meeting like this about every five years if this year's conference goes well. The Kansas Herpetological Society will host that exhibit at the Oread Hotel during the conference, which will be open to the public.
The conference coincides with the 100th anniversary of the first herpetological paper published by University student Edward Taylor in 1915, considered the start of herpetological studies at the University.
Since then, the department been noticed for its research around the country, said Jesse Grismer, a Ph.D. student in the herpetology department from Oceanside, Calif.
He said he learned about the University's reputation for herpetology from his father, who is also a herpetologist.
"It's been called the 'Harvard of herpetology schools,'" Grismer said.
The department is part of the KU Biodiversity Institute and Natural History Museum, which encompasses the graduate and research
programs. These programs spend much of their time working with the herpetology collection.
The collection includes more than 340,000 specimens collected over the past century, making it the fifth largest collection in the world, Grismer said. It's also the largest neotropical collection in the world, meaning that it has the most specimens from the tropical regions of the Americas — southern Mexico, southern Florida, Central America, South America and the Caribbean.
“[The collection] is a global record of biodiversity going back a hundred years,” said Rich Glor, a herpetology professor and curator. “That’s the history of our planet during human civilization. Maintaining some kind of record of biodiversity on this planet — it's such an obvious thing that nobody thinks about.”
Glor said the collection has been built up by decades of researchers. Bill and Linda Duellman, who are now curators emeritus, have added thousands of specimens to the collection and grown the program to what it is now.
VALERIE HAAG/KANSAN
Jesse Grismer, a Ph.D. student from Oceanside, Calif., holds a dragon from the family of the Komodo Dragon from the collection storage. Grismer and other collegues collect different animal species and study them in the National History Museum in Dyche Hall.
VALERIE HAAG/KANSAN
Various snake species can be found in the collection storage of the National History Museum in Dyche Hall. The museum collects more than 340,000 different species from all over the world.
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