Big-time murder trials tax rural county budgets

A person found guilty of murder pays for the crime with life, but taxpayers and the county where the crime occurs pay in cash.

Many expenses are involved in prosecuting a murder trial, ranging from costly expert witnesses to third-party services for subpoenas.

The burden is especially great for rural counties, which typically have smaller annual budgets and less experience in handling big or complicated cases.

Butler County just went through an expensive murder trial last year with the prosecution of Mark Becker, who shot and killed Parkersburg-Aplington football coach Ed Thomas in 2009. Becker claimed insanity as a defense. His trial logged more than $29,000 for expert witnesses and cost about $103,000 total.

The year before, Buchanan County had the murder trial of Michelle Kehoe, who was convicted of killing her 2-year-old son, Seth, and attempting to kill son Sean, 7, in 2008. She also claimed insanity; trial expenses totaled more than $65,000.

Iowa County will now face huge expenses for five murder trials, including one last year, one in January and three others perhaps this year.

County officials have altered budget plans and made some sacrifices to prosecute these without hindering other services.

The first three trials involve co-conspirators charged in the murder of Curtis Bailey, 33, of Marengo. Bailey was beaten to death with a landscaping rock in 2009.

The first defendant, Jessica Dayton, 20, of Belle Plaine, was convicted last year. Jacob Hilgendorf, 20, of Belle Plaine, was convicted in January. The third defendant, Denise Frei, 45, of Marengo, will be tried Aug. 15.

The other two murder trials are of Tonch Weldon, 38, of rural Marengo, who will be tried July 12, and Peter Riggs, 32, of Columbus, Ohio, who will be tried June 6.

Weldon is accused of killing Amy Gephart, 35, of rural Marengo. Riggs is accused of killing Jeffrey McAdam, 46, of Victor, an Interstate 80 rest-stop maintenance worker.

The costs of the trials for Hilgendorf and Frei will be higher, because each were granted a change of venue to Davenport. Security demands and related overtime for the Sheriff's Officewill drive up costs.

The Frei, Weldon and Riggs trials will include expert-witness fees, too.

Iowa County Attorney Tim McMeen refused to talk about his expenses for these trials, saying he didn't want to discuss anything about the cases until they were completed. Trial expenses were obtained through an Iowa open-records request.

In the Dayton and Hilgendorf trials, McMeen's costs were not as high as the sheriff's, because no expert witnesses were needed.

The largest expense was $5,242 for the state medical examiner's travel to Marengo in April 2010 for Dayton's trial and then in January for Hilgendorf's. Dr. Jerri McLemore, medical examiner, lived in Ankeny when Dayton was prosecuted. She had relocated to North Carolina by the time Hilgendorf was tried.

The medical examiner's expenses will be reimbursed by the state.

Other expenses included subpoenas, mailing costs, disposition transcripts and copies of transcripts to court reporters, and travel and lodging costs in Davenport forAssistant Iowa County Attorney Lou McMeen during Hilgendorf's trial. Lou McMeen is the father of County Attorney Tim McMeen.

Iowa County Sheriff Robert Rotter estimates his costs will reach $100,000 or more by the time all five people have been prosecuted.

“The financial burden on Iowa County taxpayers has been great, but I try to always remember it never compares to the burdens placed on the families, both emotionally and financially, that are directly impacted by these terrible crimes,” Rotter said.

About $4,000 came out of the sheriff's budget for personnel and travel during the Hilgendorf trial in Davenport, and he expects at least as much for the Frei trial.

Rotter asked the Board of Supervisors to put aside any carry-over from his fiscal 2008-09 budget for the next year, knowing the trials were coming up. He replaced little equipment and saved more than $60,000, but $50,000 of it went into the 2009-10 fiscal budget for trials.

The Iowa County Jail also has had higher costs, feeding and clothing the defendants while awaiting their trials, Rotter said.

Legal expertise from the Attorney General's Office doesn't cost counties anything, however. The Area Prosecution Division has 12 attorneys who assist rural counties with prosecuting cases like murder, kidnapping, sexual assault and non-violent crimes like fraud and corruption.

“It's still the county attorney's case, and they determine our role,” said Assistant Attorney General Scott Brown, division director. “Sometimes they are first chair (lead prosecutor), and sometimes they are second chair. We have a good relationship with the county attorneys across the state.”

Brown prosecuted Becker in 2010, for example.

“I relied on the Attorney General's Office to guide me in what was needed, like expert witnesses,” Butler County Attorney Greg Lievens said. “I helped them with what they needed and helped plan for security with the sheriff's office. I hadn't prosecuted a murder case before and hope I don't have to in the future. I think our last murder case was in the 1970s.”