Judge convicts Boncz of molesting girl

SANDPOINT — District Judge Steve Verby has found a Washington state man guilty of lewd and lascivious conduct with a 5-year-old girl.

Mark Richard Boncz closed his eyes and shook his head slightly when Verby announced the verdict on Friday, a day after the defense rested its case.

A sentencing hearing is set for Jan. 19, 2010. A lewd conduct conviction in Idaho is punishable by up to life in prison.

Chief Public Defender Isabella Robertson had no comment after the verdict was announced.

The girl’s mother was pleased with the judge’s verdict and expressed her gratitude for the efforts of Priest River Police, Prosecutor Louis Marshall, victim advocate coordinator Adele Martin.

“I appreciate everything law enforcement and Louis Marshall have done,” the woman said.

Marshall credited the victim in the case, now 10, for summoning the courage to report her ordeal and was grateful for the testimony of Dr. Joyce Gilbert, a local pediatrician who served as an expert witness for the state.

“Joyce has the expertise and ability to explain actions and reactions of children who have been the victims of sexual abuse. As difficult as these cases are to prosecute, it is necessary to do whatever we can to protect children and punish the offenders,” Marshall said.

A grand jury indicted Boncz, 54, of Newport, last spring on allegations he molested the girl while living in a travel trailer behind her parent’s home in 2005. Boncz elected to be tried by the court after a mistrial was declared earlier this week.

Boncz was convicted of sexual abuse of a minor in Bonner County in 1987, a fact which was publicized before a jury was seated.

The conviction was not raised by the prosecution during Boncz’s bench trial.

“This case was a great weight,” Verby said, explaining that he found himself thinking about it when he wasn’t in court hearing testimony or reviewing evidence.

Verby prefaced his verdict by outlining some of the factors which went into his decision and some of the difficulties presented in the case, which included the lag time between the abuse and when it was reported, testimony that was vague at times and inconsistencies in various accounts of the child’s rape.

The court concluded Marshall met the burden of proving the elements of the offense and ruled that allegations of Boncz’s grooming of the victim for abuse had been corroborated.

Despite some inconsistencies between accounts of what transpired and when disclosures were made, the basic facts of the allegations withstood scrutiny, Verby ruled.

“Times may become confusing, but the fundamentals are remembered,” he said. “In this case, the child witness does recall the events that took place.”