Grant Hildreth Sentencing

Former chiropractor pleads guilty to sexual battery

American Fork - A former American Fork chiropractor appeared sunburned and exhausted Wednesday as he walked on the floor courtroom and ended a long, half a decade, the legal battle over his alleged sexual abuse.

In a series of terse, one or two word answers, Grant Hildreth, 48, acknowledged at a hearing that in 2007, he inappropriately touched a woman in a way that "has caused alarm and concern ". When the judge asked if Christine Johnson Hildreth expected to plead guilty to two Class A misdemeanors for sexual battery, he stopped, looked at his lawyer, then simply said "yes."

Hildreth pleaded guilty to the charges as part of a plea bargain with prosecutors. In addition to pleading guilty, he also promised not to apply to become a chiropractor or massage therapist in the United States for the next 25 years. In exchange, prosecutors reduced Hildreth's charges from second-degree felonies for forcible sexual abuse.

Following the entry of his pleas, Johnson sentenced Hildreth to five years of court-supervised probation.

The pleas and sentencing wrapped up the case that had dragged on for years and moved through multiple courts. Hildreth originally was convicted by a jury in 2008, after a former employee testified that he fondled her while providing treatment for a bladder infection at his American Fork office. Three other women testified that he fondled them during visits at his office and at his Riverton home, but the jury found him not guilty on those charges.

But in November, the Utah Court of Appeals overturned that conviction. The court found that including the testimony of the three other accusers was unduly prejudicial against Hildreth.The harm outweighs the utility of including such evidence, the court ruled, and the case returned to Utah County prosecutors.

Defense counsel Carolyn E. Howard said his top priority after the decision of the Court of Appeal was to ensure that Hildreth avoided a prison sentence added. Hildreth spent two years in prison before his conviction was overturned.

Howard said Wednesday that Hildreth was relieved the case was the resolution, but saddened by what he had lost.

"We gave up her career to avoid returning to prison," said John Howard.

Since its release, Hildreth worked manual jobs, said John Howard.

Prosecutor Alex Ludlow said he felt the resolution of the case has served the interests of justice and was a positive development for both sides.

A.F. chiropractor a no-show for sentencing

It may be awhile before Grant Joel Hildreth has to begin serving his sentence for forcible sex abuse, but it looks like he may have to spend the interim in the Utah County Jail.

Fourth District Judge David Mortensen issued a no-bail warrant for Hildreth, an American Fork chiropractor who was convicted of sexually abusing a former employee, after he didn't show up for his sentencing hearing on Friday. Had Hildreth shown up, he wouldn't have been sentenced because Adult Probation and Parole requested that the hearing be continued so the agency could have more time to complete a pre-sentencing report.

Carolyn Howard-Morris, Hildreth's defense attorney, had also filed a request for a stay while they await the outcome of an appeal she filed of Hildreth's conviction in March. If the stay is granted, the judge could sentence Hildreth but allow him to remain free until his appeal is finished.

Howard-Morris did not attend Friday's sentencing hearing in American Fork either. Court personnel were unsuccessful in their attempts to reach her by phone.

Prosecutor Alex Ludlow said Hildreth, 45, of Riverton, was supposed to report to APP by March 27, but he did not show up until April 3, which may have been partly responsible for APP's delay in completing Hildreth's pre-sentence report.

"It would seem to indicate that he's not taking this as seriously" as he should, Ludlow said.

Ludlow also said he feels that Hildreth is a potential flight risk.

"I think the state has some concerns based on some of his earlier actions," he said.

Hildreth was convicted in 1992 of sexually assaulting a 15-year-old girl in Beaverhead County, Mont. According to news reports, the sexual contact with the teenage girl occurred in 1989, but he was not charged with a crime until about two years later, when the victim's father found a letter she wrote to a friend about the assault.

Hildreth was denied reinstatement of his chiropractic license in Idaho in the mid-1990s because of the conviction, according to Ludlow. He was also investigated for misconduct in Louisiana before moving to Utah, though Ludlow said he did not know the outcome of that investigation.

Ludlow said he plans to ask for prison time for Hildreth. Forcible sex abuse is a second-degree felony that is punishable by up to 15 years in prison.

In March, a jury convicted Hildreth on two counts of forcible sex abuse while acquitting him of four others. The charges he was convicted on stemmed from allegations by a former employee that he fondled her while providing treatment for a bladder infection at his American Fork office. The jury found him not guilty of fondling three former patients.

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Atlantic reporter, cases argued and determined in the courts of Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont

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