Former freelance reporter found guilty by jury of domestic battery
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IDAHO FALLS — A former freelance reporter was found guilty of attacking a woman after a two-day jury trial.
David Helaman George, 36, was found guilty of one count of felony domestic battery, inflicting traumatic injury.
He was originally charged with two counts of the same charge, but was acquitted on the second.
George was previously a freelance writer who occasionally wrote stories for EastIdahoNews.com. As a result of his conviction, he will no longer be contributing to our platform.
According to court minutes, the jury trial included witness testimony from George, the victim, and an Idaho Falls Police Officer who responded to the incident, which occurred on Feb. 11, 2025.
Police reports say that around 6 a.m., an officer responded to a home in Idaho Falls for a domestic disturbance call.
When they arrived, a woman reported that George had been stealing her Adderall prescription and abusing it. She claimed that he had been “up for two days” and was experiencing “some sort of religious mania.”
According to the woman, when she tried to take her prescription back from George, he “pushed, punched, and threw her to the ground.”
Officers say they saw bloody scratch marks on the woman’s chest as well as bruises, “which appeared to be consistent with being pushed or punched.”
The woman also had a bruise on her back, which she says was caused by George pushing her into a shelf, and older bruises on both of her arms, which she said were from a different fight with George a few nights before.
Officers found George at a nearby LDS church, and say he admitted that he was in an argument with the woman over “religious stuff” but denied taking her prescription. George stated that he had wanted to speak to the woman about religious doctrine, and that she did not want to talk about it.
George told officers he was getting angry and decided to leave, but the woman “got in his way” and wouldn’t let him go, so he “had to drag himself out of there,” according to the police report.
He then reportedly claimed the woman had gotten physical with him in the past and she had caused her own injuries.
George was then arrested and booked into the Bonneville County Jail.
He is expected to appear for sentencing on Nov. 16. He could face up to 10 years in prison.