| Wensman
sisters plead guilty to amended charges
Debra Wensman, age 51, and Doris Wensman, age 46, pled guilty last week to amended charges of trying to hire someone to kill their neighbor. The Greencreek sisters could receive up to 10 years in prison at their sentencing which was set for Mary 20 and 21 by Second District Judge Gregory FitzMaurice. FitzMaurice also ordered pre-sentence investigations and a no-contact order with 11 of the sisters’ neighbors and other community members. The two were taken into custody Jan. 24, 2019, after offering to pay an undercover law enforcement officer money, guns and ammunition to kill their neighbor. According to court records, Doris Wensman approached a man who was delivering fuel oil to her home and asked him to kill their neighbor. The man refused, then reported the incident to law enforcement officials who set up an undercover sting. A recording was played during their preliminary hearing and both sisters were heard discussing their desire to see their neighbor killed. They claimed he had been harassing them for some time. They offered to pay the undercover officer $5,000 plus guns and ammunition that were stored at their home. They have been free on $100,000 bail since shortly after their arrest. In January they and their lawyers met with Judge Carl Kerrick and reached a plea agreement. In exchange for their guilty pleas, Idaho County Prosecutor Kirk A. MacGregor amended the original charges of “criminal solicitation to commit a crime” and changed them to “intent to commit a serious felony.” The plea agreement is subject to Judge FitzMaurice’s acceptance. It would include sentences of a fixed four years in the state penitentiary for each sister and an additional indeterminate sentence of 6 years each. The plea agreement also allows for the judge to retain jurisdiction over the sisters for one year, at the end of which they would be eligible for supervised probation for seven years. During that time, according to court records, they must seek to enter a mental health court and are prohibited from living within 150 miles of Greencreek. The judge also ordered no contact with their former neighbors. Debra Wensman was represented by John R. Korman of Korman and Sneed, LLP of Boise. Doris Wensman was represented by Charles F. Peterson of Boise. |
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