Trial Date Moved for Felony Theft Case

At an arraignment hearing held in December of last year in Fourth Judicial District Court in Sheridan, Sean Vance entered a plea of “not guilty by reason of mental impairment or deficiency” to the charge of Felony Theft for allegedly taking over $2,400 in merchandise from Wal-Mart in Sheridan on November 11. A mental health evaluation was ordered at that time due to the plea that was entered by the defendant. At a hearing Thursday, District Court Judge John Fenn adopted the report from the Wyoming State Hospital and found Vance was competent to stand trial.

The date for the trial was changed from April 19 to May 24, as Vance’s public defender Anna Malmberg said she remains hopeful that a plea agreement can be reached with the State, but requested more time, as she had been waiting for the results of the evaluation by the State Hospital before an agreement could be negotiated with the prosecution. A pretrial conference was scheduled for April 29 at 9:30 am. Felony Theft is punishable by up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000.