Two sentenced for barging into house with guns and assaulting sleeping man
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SUGAR CITY — The two men who barged into a Sugar City home with guns because they believed a woman had been raped received their sentences.
Jake White, 19, and Spencer Tew, 18, were both placed on rider programs after pleading guilty to felony aggravated assault. Both appeared on May 10 before District Judge Steven Boyce, who opted to retain jurisdiction in the case while suspending two to five-year prison sentences.
A rider or retained jurisdiction is when a judge sends a person to prison for up to a year to undergo different treatment programs. When the inmate has completed the program, the judge can then decide to send them back to prison or release them on probation.
The two pleaded guilty to the charge as part of a plea agreement made with Madison County Prosecutors. According to the plea agreement obtained by EastIdahoNews.com, prosecutors agreed to recommend Tew and White spend no longer than two to five years in prison with the rider program on the table.
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The victim told investigators he picked up a woman and brought her back to his place. He said shortly after picking up the woman that Tew allegedly texted “he better watch his back or something bad was going to happen to him,” according to an affidavit of probable cause.
After falling asleep, the victim remembers waking up to White and Tew pulling him out of bed and dragging him into the living room. Once there, the man said the pair told him to get on his knees and asked if he was ready to die. Tew is alleged to have then cocked the gun while putting it to the man’s head.
A 12-year-old was staying at the trailer and went back to wake up the other roommates. The roommates tried to calm the intruders and Tew and White eventually left the house. No one called 911 and the roommates went back to bed, according to court documents.
When asked what would have provoked the attack, the man and witnesses said White and Tew believed the man had raped the woman and there was video of the alleged sexual assault. Those involved reportedly knew the woman from parties and said Tew and White had supplied her with pills.
A witness told detectives the woman had texted him and told him she had not been raped. She said she had nothing to do with the alleged attack. A search of court records shows the victim in the assault was never charged for an alleged sexual assault.
In addition to the rider program, court records indicate Boyce ordered both White and Tew to pay $1,745.50 in fees and fines.