MINNEAPOLIS — A Minnesota Supreme Court appeals panel has ordered the first full and unconditional release from the state’s sex offender treatment program.

Last year, a federal judge ruled that the program was unconstitutional after concluding it was detaining untold numbers of offenders who no longer met the state’s criteria for confinement.

According to a press release, the ruling Wednesday unconditionally discharges 26-year-old Eric Terhaar from the program. He was spent the past six years in state confinement for sexual acts he committed as a child. The court said Terhaar’s need for further therapy could be met in the community, rather than in confinement.