Lewis Stalker to Be Let Loose

01/08/1999 at 12:00 AM EST

A man who was convicted of stalking comic Jerry Lewis is scheduled to be freed from prison next month. The Las Vegas Sun reports that a date of Oct. 5 has been set for the release of Gary Benson, 56, who has served 4.3 years of his six-year sentence. Benson, a diagnosed chronic schizophrenic, was convicted in 1995 of aggravated stalking. Glen Whorton, chief of classification and planning for the Nevada prison system, said Benson will not have to report to a parole officer.

• Meanwhile, the 73-year-old comedian plans to go to court Sept. 21 to try to extend a 1992 protective order against Benson. The Lewis stalking case played a key role in the passage of a bill by the Nevada Legislature this year that increased the maximum aggravated stalking penalty to 15 years.