Lawyer Says Isu Players Got Off Easy
Bannock County Prosecutor Mark Hiedeman has rejected as ridiculous allegations that reverse racism marked his handling of the grand theft case involving five Idaho State University basketball players.
“Race is not something we look at when we charge someone with a crime,” Hiedeman said. “It’s the conduct of the person and not their race.”
Public Defender Randy Schulthies claimed Hiedeman practiced selective prosecution in filing a felony grand theft charge against Cynthia Bartholomew, the 18-year-old white ShopKo clerk involved in the scheme with the five black players.
The players each pleaded guilty to misdemeanor theft and were placed on six months probation, fined and ordered to perform community service. Their scholarships were suspended.
Bartholomew, who was fired, faces a March 11 trial and, if convicted, a maximum penalty of 14 years in prison and a $5,000 fine.
Bartholomew allegedly charged David Hickman, Rapheal Fondren, Dedrick Bell, Stephen Brown and Cedric Robinson only for gum when they went through her checkout stand with hundreds of dollars of electronic equipment.
Schulthies claims Bartholomew was treated unfairly since she and the players were equally involved in the scheme but charged differently.
The Chubbuck Police Department made the decision to cite the five players with misdemeanors, and those are not forwarded to the prosecutor. Because of that, Hiedeman said the only information his office saw involved Bartholomew.
“We saw nothing concerning the players,” he said. “Once they appeared in court on their misdemeanor citations, there was no way we could have stepped in and asked for a felony charge without infringing on their right not to face double jeopardy.”
Chubbuck Police Chief Jerry Rowland also objected to Schulthies’ suggestion that race was an issue in the investigation.
Misdemeanor citations were issued to the players after ISU athletic director Irv Cross and basketball coach Herb Williams helped identify the players involved, Rowland said.