Withers seeks home
sentence
Byline: C.G.
Wallace
September
17 1996
One day after LaVar Withers
entered the Madison County Jail to begin his 30-day jail sentence, the retired
Rexburg doctor's attorney filed a motion for his client to serve the rest of his
jail term at his Rexburg home.
Withers pleaded guilty to one count of battery that spanned the 30 years he
worked as a doctor and was sentenced to serve at least 30 days of a 180-day
sentence. In exchange, Special Prosecutor Dan Hawkley dropped 16 felony counts
of sex abuse of a minor.
The motion itself, filed last Friday, does not state any reasons justifying
house arrest. A hearing on the motion is scheduled for Thursday at 2:30 p.m. in
the Bonneville County Courthouse.
The one-sentence motion reads: Comes now the Defendant, LaVar Withers, in the
above-entitled cause and respectfully moves the court for an order permitting
Defendant to serve the remainder of his 30-day incarceration under house arrest
rather than in the Madison County Jail."
Withers was sentenced to 30 days in jail and another 30 days to be served at the
discretion of the court. He was also ordered to serve two years probation and 10
hours a week of community service during that two years.
The plea agreement waived the statute of limitations on the majority of
complaints by women who claimed they were fondled by Withers. The Rape Response
Center has a list of 117 women who say they are also the doctor's victims.
Hawkley, who conducted the case against Withers, said he is not impressed"
with the motion. However, Hawkley is no longer involved in the criminal aspect
of the case. Either an attorney from the Madison County Prosecutor's office or a
specially appointed attorney will have to take over any criminal action from
this point, he said.
The Madison County Prosecutor's office had previously stated that they have a
conflict of interest in the case.
Hawkley is now representing Withers' victims in a civil suit.
Lionel Koon, the chairman of the state's council on domestic violence, said
Withers' original sentence was simply a token. The request for house arrest
simply re-victimizes the women who thought the plea agreement was solid.
Efforts to reach Withers' attorneys for comment were unsuccessful.
