Bradley Verstraete spent a year in jail after his arrest in August 2006, when sheriff's officers suspected he was attempting to manufacture methamphetamine.

But it took a Reno County jury just an hour to determine he was innocent.

Officers said little to him when he was released from the Reno County Jail, Verstraete said.

"They just wished me luck."

Now, the 36-year-old man needs all the luck he can get.

Verstraete said his only possessions are what he was wearing when he was set free.

"I'm just glad it's over," he said. "It was a pretty big inconvenience in life."

He credits local organizations like First Call For Help, Horizons Mental Health Center and New Beginnings for helping him get back on his feet. Homeless at first, Verstraete has now obtained an apartment in town.

"If you want to be successful, you can," he said. "Hutchinson has a very strong community as far as helping people get back on their feet if they want to."

Doing the time

So why does a man spend a year in jail when it took a jury only an hour to deem him innocent?

Reno County court records and police reports reveal the circumstances surrounding Verstraete's year in jail.

Continuances, from both prosecution and defense attorneys, stalled the case, as did a change in defense lawyers.

The trouble began Aug. 12, 2006, when Reno County Sheriff's officers pulled over a Toyota pickup during a traffic stop in Turon. Sheriff's deputies reportedly noticed a strong chemical smell coming from the truck. Verstraete was a passenger in the truck, which was driven by Donald Tummons.

After noticing a blue Coleman cooler in the back of the truck and a duffle bag with a glass jar, officers called in the Drug Enforcement Unit. Officers reported finding items they thought were consistent with a mobile meth lab: glass jars, camp fuel, clear plastic tubing and starter fluid.

They also found fishing poles in the truck bed - Verstraete maintains he was fishing that day and Tummons was giving him a ride home.

After both men were arrested, Verstraete was taken to the Reno County Jail, with his bond set at $50,000 with surety.

Verstraete said he was never able to get a reduction in his bond. However, $50,000 is a state-mandated bond for anyone accused of manufacturing meth.

Although Verstraete did not have a history of using meth, he has been arrested in the past on suspicion of driving under the influence, possession of marijuana and aggravated burglary and assault. His DUI case was dismissed when a state witness did not appear, and juries in the other two cases found him not guilty.

Former public defender Kiehl Rathbun was appointed as Verstraete's attorney in August 2006, and a preliminary hearing was set for Sept. 25, 2006. But the hearing was delayed by the state's request, pending test results from the Kansas Bureau of Investigation laboratory.

During the preliminary hearing Nov. 1, 2006, then-Judge Steven Becker found "probable cause to believe the defendant committed the charged felonies." Formal arraignment took place days later, when Verstraete pleaded innocent to the charges.

A jury trial set for Jan. 23 was continued several times, until it finally took place last month. During the lapse of time, the case was continued three times by the defense and time was charged to Verstraete for the purpose of a speedy trial.

After Rathbun left the public defender's office this year, Chief Public Defender Sarah McKinnon was assigned to the case in April. Both the public defender's office and the district attorney's office consistently deal with turnover.

When McKinnon took the case, she requested in June that Verstraete undergo an evaluation from Horizons Mental Health Center to determine if he was competent to stand trial.

Trial by jury

During his trial at the end of August, Verstraete testified he had been fishing the day of his arrest and he didn't know the drug-related items were in the truck.

Officers apparently uncovered several of the items inside duffle bags in the back of the truck.

"That's what the jury believed and that's what the evidence showed - that he didn't know it was there," said McKinnon.

Tom Stanton, Reno County deputy district attorney, said he's not trying to be critical of the jury's decision, and he does think the case could have been investigated better.

He also thinks Verstraete could've provided more information than he did at the time of his arrest, so officers could have investigated all of the possibilities.

"If we knew more information in a timely fashion, we could've gone out and investigated that," he said. "But the defendant is not required to talk to us at all.

"Officers are asked why they won't follow up on information that was never given to them."

Verstraete was found innocent of manufacturing meth, attempting to manufacture meth, possession of ephedrine and possession of paraphernalia.

Stanton is quick to point out: "It is not 'innocent,' it is 'not guilty.' "

Tummons, who was driving the truck the night he was arrested with Verstraete, is awaiting trial on the same charges.

Verstraete is working on "starting life all over again."

"There's loopholes in the system, and I guess I fell in one of them," he said.