Douglas County domestic violence trial reset after defense attorney withdraws

A felony domestic-violence trial in Douglas County fell apart at the last minute Friday, after one of Shaleah Kauffman’s appointed attorneys was allowed to withdraw, forcing the case to start over just as it was set for a Monday trial. The reset pushes back a prosecution that already carried two felony counts, domestic battery and aggravated battery, and raises the stakes for everyone waiting on a resolution.

The delay is more than a scheduling hiccup. It means Kauffman will now be represented by a different court-appointed attorney, adding another layer of delay to a case that already involved testimony about repeated violence, a broken ankle, and prior domestic-battery convictions in Douglas County. For victims and witnesses, that means more waiting. For the court, it adds another contested case to an already crowded docket. For the defense, it also means a fresh lawyer must catch up quickly on a file that had already moved through key motions and evidence disputes.

In an earlier March 17 hearing, a man testified that Kauffman attacked him twice in the fall of 2023. He said the first assault happened early on Oct. 21, 2023, after Kauffman had been drinking at a bar. He described a violent encounter in which she threw a metal pan at him, came at him with a knife, punched him, bit him and ripped out his hair while he was holding a baby. He said the second attack happened about a month later in front of multiple children and left him with a broken ankle.

Prosecutor Todd Hiatt also presented evidence that Kauffman had two prior domestic-battery convictions in Douglas County, from 2019 and 2022. Along with the felony counts, she faced misdemeanor charges of endangering a child, theft, criminal damage to property and violation of a protective order. The case had been scheduled for trial June 1 before it was reset, and the next court date is June 10, when the parties are expected to discuss rescheduling.

The case is playing out in Douglas County District Court, part of the 7th Judicial District, at the Judicial and Law Enforcement Center, 111 E. 11th St. in Lawrence. Kansas courts moved Douglas County onto the eCourt case management system in 2023, making case records searchable through CaseSearch. The broader domestic-violence context is stark: The Willow Domestic Violence Center, which serves Douglas, Franklin and Jefferson counties, operates a 24-hour hotline at 785-843-3333, and Kansas advocacy programs reported serving 650 victims in a single 24-hour national count on Sept. 4, 2024.