2 LIFERS COULD WIN EARLY RELEASE

Two Kansans serving life sentences for possessing small amounts of
cocaine might win early release at the urging of state prison officials.

Secretary of Corrections Roger Werholtz filed a motion Wednesday in
Sedgwick County District Court on behalf of Paul Goseland and another
in Geary County District Court on behalf of Gloria Van Winkle, both
sentenced under an old law that mandated life terms for third
convictions for cocaine possession.

Goseland, 51, of Wichita, was convicted in 1993, and Van Winkle, 44,
of Junction City, was convicted in 1992.

The motions ask that both sentences be changed from a minimum of life
with parole eligibility after 15 years to a minimum of 20 years and a
maximum term of life. If the courts rule as the motions recommend,
Goseland would be eligible for parole this September rather than in
September 2009, and Van Winkle would be eligible this August rather
than in August 2007.

"I recognize and respect the legislative intent for the law which
existed when inmates Van Winkle and Goseland were sentenced," Werholtz
said in a news release. "That statute, however, has been repealed."

Both cases -- particularly Van Winkle's -- have often been cited by
groups opposed to mandatory sentencing laws. Van Winkle was convicted
for possession of less than $40 worth of cocaine, and activists note
that the mother of two has already served a longer term than many
violent criminals.

"We don't think crime should go unpunished, but we think the
punishment should fit the crime," said Paul Ninemeir of the advocacy
group Families Against Mandatory Minimums. "In these cases, it didn't
fit."

Jane Stevenson, a volunteer at the Topeka Correctional Facility, where
Van Winkle has been imprisoned, has been one of the prisoner's
advocates. She said Van Winkle has been involved in a variety of
prison programs and was cautiously hopeful about the motion and Van
Winkle's chances for early release.

"We've got our hopes up so many times and been disappointed,"
Stevenson said. "Until she's out of there, I won't relax."

A hearing has been scheduled in Sedgwick County for Goseland on May 21
and the Geary County court has scheduled a hearing for Van Winkle on
May 17. Prison officials said there is no way to predict how the
courts might rule.

"I can honestly tell you that in the last 15 years I don't recall the
Department of Corrections submitting a motion for sentence
modification such as these," said Bill Miskell, a spokesman for the
state's prison system.

Werholtz said in his release that other inmates might be serving long
terms under the old law, and "I am willing to give careful
consideration to inmates in similar circumstances."

However, Miskell said no such inmates have been identified.