By Shayna Jacobs
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
MANHATTAN SUPREME COURT — Sentencing for an Indiana man convicted of stalking Ashanti by sending lewd and disturbing text messages to the singer's mother was delayed because of issues with his residency.
Devar Hurd, 31, was extradited to New York on July 22, 2009 to face harassment and stalking charges in Manhattan, where Ashanti and her mother, Tina Douglas, were staying during the star's theater debut as Dorothy in "The Wiz."
Hurd allegedly peppered Douglas with what he called "sex texts," which included photos of his genitals and explicit written descriptions of his imaginary sexual dalliances with the celebrity, who he claimed to have met once at a concert in Chicago.
"Here's a pic I had laying around for the ladies in sum of my birthday suit lol," Hurd wrote on May 30, 2009.
Hurd's family moved a short distance in December from Indiana to Chicago Heights, Illinois, which has hindered the judge's liberty to sentence Hurd to probation plus psychiatric treatment — which experts have determined he requires.
Hurd has no relatives in New York or Indiana, the two states where a probation arrangement would be immediately possible.
Manhattan Supreme Court judge Thomas Farber said he would prefer to release Hurd by putting him on probation and requiring therapy. Illinois is not as amenable to taking out-of-state probation cases as Indiana seems to be, Farber said.
"Obviously if the only option is incarceration, then it will be incarceration. But it semes to be not helpful to anybody at this point," Farber said.
The New York State probation department will continue to try to arrange a deal with Illinois authorities before Hurd is due back in court for sentencing on Feb. 2.
Hurd's attorney, Richard Verchick, would not elaborate on his client's psychatric condition, but confirmed Hurd suffered from fantasies and a misunderstanding of reality.
The crazed fan, who testified on his own behalf during the trial, claimed he was a record company CEO who negotiated a record deal with Ashanti's producer Irv Gotti. Hurd said he believed Gotti was jealous of him because of his fantasized relationship with Ashanti.
"That he's delusional has been confirmed clinically," Verchick said. "He needs treatment."
