Douglas County District Attorney Suzanne Valdez today announced that Eduardo Martinez Diaz, 16, of Lawrence, was sentenced for two counts of criminal discharge of a firearm in connection to a 2021 shooting in north Lawrence. 

Judge Merlin Wheeler sentenced Martinez Diaz, who was charged as an adult and who pleaded guilty in December, to 36 months probation with a 64-month underlying sentence in prison if Martinez Diaz violates the terms of his probation. Martinez Diaz also will be required to register as a violent offender for 15 years. 

A victim of a crime should never be afraid to come forward. Reporting a crime is the most effective way to make our community safer by holding offenders accountable. Yet far too often, many default to a position of disbelief or distrust when survivors of sexual assault share their experiences.

When a sexual assault is in any way made public, especially because of the involvement of the criminal justice system, people typically wonder:

Douglas County District Attorney Suzanne Valdez today announced that Bruce S. Springsteen, 65, of Lawrence, pleaded no contest Friday to attempted sexual exploitation of a child by conducting internet searches for child sexual abuse material, a violation of his probation terms set in a similar 2021 case.

Ollie Ortiz died tragically. Perhaps equally tragic is the fact that nothing in our criminal justice system can return Ollie to his loved ones.

Prior to taking office on January 11, 2021, I was generally aware of this case, but I had no access to the file or authority to act prior to being sworn in as Douglas County District Attorney. When I took office, Carrody Buchhorn had already been convicted of Murder in the Second Degree and her appeal was pending.

The following is a brief timeline of key events in the case, which tragically began more than six years ago: