KEARNEY, Neb. — A Kearney man accused of threatening a police lieutenant and stalking the city’s police chief will have to wait another couple of months before finding out his sentence.

This is the second sentencing delay for 59-year-old Marcus Ditchman, who is convicted of third-degree assault and misdemeanor stalking in separate cases.

Instead of delivering a sentence at a December hearing, district court judge Patrick Lee sent Ditchman to the Nebraska Department of Corrections for 90 days to undergo a “complete study” including a comprehensive medical, psychological, and neuropsychological assessment. At the hearing, Lee described the pre-sentence investigation report as one of the most bizarre he’d ever seen and said he needed to see more material and added testing in order to issue a sentence.

The court originally set a new sentencing date for Feb. 28 but changed it to Feb. 26 because of a conflict with the court’s calendar. Two days before the new sentencing date, Ditchman’s attorney, Dustin Garrison, made a motion to continue the hearing because he had a conflict with the new date. Ditchman will now be sentenced on May 2.

Ditchman’s 90-day evaluation is set to be finished on March 19. At that point, he will be eligible for release if he posts bond. When granting the continuance, Lee also set a new bond of 10% of $35,000. Ditchman can use the $900 he has already posted for bond toward the new total. As conditions of the new bond, Ditchman can’t use social media, podcasting or have contact with the police lieutenant involved in the case.

The case dates back to May of 2023. Ditchman identified himself as a “copwatcher” at the time and operated a social media page where he would film police and share his thoughts on law enforcement. He went to the police station on May 21 and had a heated encounter with Lieutenant Jason Koetters that Ditchman live-streamed on his Facebook page.

At one point, he counted up to five and then said, “I swear to God, I will let these dogs go and they will munch the f— out of you.” A police affidavit says he was holding the door handle next to the dogs while making the threat. That comment, combined with previous claims from Ditchman that he trained his dogs to attack officers, eventually led police to arrest Ditchman for terroristic threats.

The second case dates back to Sept. 2023. The county attorney charged Ditchman with five misdemeanors, including two counts of stalking. Court documents list Kearney Police Chief Bryan Waugh and his wife as victims, but details of the investigation are sealed. That case is also set for sentencing on May 2.