‘I’m not a monster,’ says Idaho Falls man as he’s sentenced to prison for abuse
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IDAHO FALLS — An Idaho Falls man says he is “not a monster” despite leaving a victim scarred from abuse that was stopped because a dollar store employee called for help.
Dressed in a brown jail jumpsuit, 36-year-old Kristopher Darrel Lloyd Griffey walked into a Bonneville County Courtroom Monday afternoon for his sentencing. Griffey pleaded guilty in March to felony domestic battery inflicting traumatic injury and felony attempted strangulation stemming from a terrifying string of events last August.
“I’m not a monster,” Griffey said before he received his sentence. “I told (the victim) that day I was more than willing to face this and I’m telling you right now I’m more than willing to face this.”
Police reports show Griffey was arrested after several 911 calls were made and the victim passed a note to a Dollar Tree cashier asking for help. Officers learned Griffey abused the woman several times over a single weekend that resulted in her going to a local hospital with a broken nose.
RELATED | Dollar Tree cashier helps woman escape violent abuse, court documents say
During the weekend, the victim’s young child witnessed the abuse. Griffey reportedly said, “Say goodbye to mommy because it would be the last time he sees her,” according to court documents. The abuse and threats by Griffey included how he would take her to the hills where she would never be found.
Court documents described in graphic detail the threats of torture and death made to the victim. Griffey also reportedly told the victim he would end not only her life but also the lives of her family members.
Eventually, a Dollar Tree employee on 17th Street called 911 saying a woman passed a note to a cashier saying, “Call the police, I’m in danger,” along with her address. Idaho Falls Police officers learned the woman was a domestic violence victim they had been trying to reach.
“I could not understand why I was treated this way by somebody who made me believe he loved me,” the victim said as tears fell onto her written victim impact statement. “I could not understand what I could have possibly done to have my son and I both deserve to have these things done to us.”
The victim described the terror she experienced and the lasting mental effect the abuse had on her. She said her young son, who witnessed the abuse, has been in trouble at school for violently hurting others, saying, “Kris said that is how to be a man.”
Bonneville County Deputy Prosecutor Russell Spencer asked District Judge Dane H. Watkins Jr. to give Griffey a total of two to 12 years in prison. Spencer explained Griffey’s extensive criminal history, including a felony attempted strangulation case with another victim in Bannock County. Griffey was on parole at the time of the new domestic violence charges.
Public Defender Rocky Wixom did not oppose the fact that Griffey should go to prison but instead asked the minimum term be one year behind bars. Wixom specifically argued that the victim’s credibility should be considered, specifically mentioning her use of methamphetamine.
“I’m going to do everything I can to make this right,” Griffey said. “There is no justification. It doesn’t matter what she said or what really happened. The fact is I did these actions. I’m responsible for my actions. I made a choice.”
Watkins called Griffey’s actions “terrorizing.”
“There was physical harm and there was mental harm,” Watkins said. “In fact, the court would describe it as mental terror. The threats that were made on this day are appalling. They were a threat then and they’re a threat now. It is a living nightmare to live through something like that.”
With concern for protecting others and Griffey’s failures in previous criminal cases, Watkins sentenced Griffey to a total of three to 13 years in prison. He was also ordered to pay $2,000 in fines.
“I too feel the weight of this sentence because it is a dramatic thing that we’re discussing,” Watkins said.