Wenatchee Couple's Rape Conviction Is Overturned

The state Court of Appeals' decision yesterday to overturn the child-rape conviction of a Wenatchee couple may be a step toward vindication for others who were similarly accused, one defendant said this morning.

Carol Doggett said she is ecstatic about the decision, and that it proves she and her husband, Mark, are innocent of child-rape charges. The court, in a 2-1 ruling, overturned the Doggetts' April 1995 conviction on charges of first-degree child rape and complicity to commit first-degree child molestation.

But Carol Doggett said the ruling also demonstrates how "severely flawed" the investigation was that led to their convictions, as well as those of 19 defendants in the so-called Wenatchee sex-ring cases.

"We are not the only innocent people in prison from Wenatchee," Doggett said this morning from the state women's prison at Purdy. "The real abusers," she said, are the "CPS (state Child Protective Services) people" who initiated the case against them.

The Doggetts were never linked to the alleged sex-ring operation. However, like many of those accused as ring members, the Doggetts complained that their children were bullied into making abuse allegations by Wenatchee police Detective Bob Perez and CPS caseworkers.

The methods of the sex-ring investigation are under review by the state Ombudsman's Office. A final report is expected by late next year.

In a rare measure, the appeals court also specified that any

retrial of the Doggetts must include a hearing into whether investigators "improperly influenced" statements and testimony in the case.

"I think it shows the court is aware of the fact that something was terribly wrong in Wenatchee with the way police and CPS conducted this witch-hunt investigation," said Robert Van Siclen, one of the Doggetts' attorneys.

The Chelan County Prosecutor's Office must now decide whether to retry the case, dismiss the charges or appeal to the state Supreme Court. Deputy Prosecutor Roy Fore was unavailable for comment today.

The appeals court said the trial judge erred by allowing the counselor of the Doggetts' then-9-year-old daughter to testify about sexual abuse the girl had described.

"We conclude the court admitted those statements without proper foundation," the opinion written by Judge John A. Schultheis said. "There was no affirmative showing the child understood she needed to give accurate and truthful responses to the counselor's question, to assist the counselor in treating her."

But Judge Stephen M. Brown dissented, arguing that the child was described as bright and mature for her age by trial Judge Carol Wardell of Chelan County Superior Court. He contends the decision to overturn was based on one answer to a question during the trial. The girl responded, "I don't know" when asked what counselor Cindy Andrews' role was.

"To elevate the single question and response above all other inferences to be drawn from this record is error. . . . We cannot ignore the function of the trial court as a preliminary fact finder," he wrote.

The Doggetts, who were acquitted on similar charges of sexually abusing three of their other children, were sentenced to 10 years, 10 months in prison.

Material from The Associated Press is included in this this article.

Jake Batsell's phone message number is 206-464-2595. His e-mail address is: jaba-new@seatimes.com

Dave Birkland's phone message number is 206-515-5682. His e-mail address is: dbir-new@seatimes.com