Sentencing delayed for man accused in violent assault after alleged hit-and-run as attorney plans to withdraw from case
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ST. ANTHONY — Sentencing for a 38-year-old man accused in a violent hit-and-run case was postponed after his attorney raised concerns about information contained in his client’s sentencing documents.
Randy Wheeler was arrested in August 2025 with his son, Tayson Thomas, after two victims reported the incident to police.
RELATED | Court documents describe violent assault after alleged intentional hit-and-run
According to court documents, the victims claimed that Wheeler and Thomas had sideswiped them on 2300 East before stopping at 200 North 2300 East in St. Anthony.
There, the victims described being attacked by Wheeler and Thomas, with Thomas using a “screwdriver or similar type weapon,” as described by investigators.
Both men were charged, with Wheeler facing two felony counts of aggravated battery and two misdemeanor charges of leaving the scene of an accident and reckless driving.
Thomas had been charged with two felony counts of aggravated battery, but the charges against him were dismissed.
During Tuesday’s court hearing, Fremont County Prosecutor Lindsey Blake said Thomas died earlier this year. EastIdahoNews.com reported on Thomas’s death in June, when he was found in a canal in Idaho Falls after he was reported missing to the Bonneville County Sheriff’s Office.
RELATED | Body of missing Idaho Falls man recovered from canal
Wheeler accepted a plea agreement in May when, in exchange for a guilty plea, the state dismissed the two misdemeanor charges and one felony charge.
The state would also recommend a sentence, depending on the pre-sentence investigation, of a rider and an underlying sentence of three years fixed and seven years indeterminate.
The sentence is binding on the court and would also affect a 2017 case in Madison involving drug charges.
Issues with the pre-sentence investigation
During Tuesday’s court hearing, Wheeler’s attorney, Douglas Knutson, said he and his client were not ready to move forward with sentencing and that he planned on withdrawing as Wheeler’s attorney.
Knutson said the manner in which the pre-sentence investigation was completed was done out of order, causing what he believed was an incomplete picture of his client’s background.
He said pre-sentence investigations are often completed with a paperwork section, followed up later by an interview with investigators regarding answers to the paperwork. In Wheeler’s case, the paperwork was never fully finished, and an interview with the investigators was still conducted.
The other issue for Knutson was that no mental health evaluation was conducted for Wheeler and this was the reason he is looking to withdraw as Wheeler’s attorney.
At the beginning of the hearing, Knutson said the assumption was that early on in the case, Wheeler’s family would budget for this evaluation, but it hasn’t been completed. As a private attorney, Knutson believes that if he withdraws as Wheeler’s attorney, a public defender could be assigned to represent him and public funds could pay for the evaluation.
Knutson believes that the mental health component is still a vital part of crafting a sentence that will meet the retribution part, but also ensure there is a proper roadmap for his client to follow to help rehabilitate him.
“There are some holes in this that have a direct bearing on my client’s rehabilitation, and I think the state needs to take that seriously, along with all these other objectives for criminal punishment,” Knutson said. “I don’t think the court has an adequate picture.”
Blake argued that, while they are ready to proceed with sentencing, the state would be OK if the court determined to continue the sentencing process.
However, she noted that even if an updated pre-sentence investigation were conducted, it would not affect the state’s recommendation under the plea agreement.
District Judge Steven Boyce granted the defense’s motion to continue sentencing and allowed Knutson to file a motion seeking a mental health evaluation for Wheeler. Knutson said he would file the motion, with proof that his client is indigent, to get the process going.
However, Boyce told Knutson and Blake that this process would cause some delay and is unsure when to set another hearing once an evaluation is ordered and completed.
Knutson plans to do so within 90 days, and the court agreed to reach out to schedule a future sentencing date.