Deardorff's counsel wants out of case

SANDPOINT — A public defender for a motorist who pleaded guilty to causing a deadly highway collision wants out of the case.

Chief Deputy Public Defender Janet Whitney contends there is a conflict of interest in light of William David Deardorff’s post-conviction claims of ineffective counsel.

Deardorff, 54, of Spokane, Wash., entered guilty pleas to vehicular manslaughter and aggravated drunken driving six months after the U.S. Highway 95 crash in Careywood that caused the death of one Bonner County woman and seriously injured another.

Kimberlee Rae Dingman, a 44-year-old married mother of three, was fatally injured in the Dec. 3, 2008, crash. Crystal Bertolucci, 32, was seriously injured. Bertolucci’s infant daughter escaped serious harm.

Idaho State Police said Deardorff was driving southbound in a pickup truck when he veered into the path of Bertolucci’s northbound sport utility vehicle. Dingman was a front-seat passenger in Bertolucci’s Jeep Liberty.

In September, 1st District Judge Steve Verby ordered Deardorff to serve 10-15 years in prison, but Deardorff subsequently filed a petition for post-conviction relief. He is asking the court to halve the fixed, 10-year portion of the sentence so he can enter substance abuse treatment programs sooner.

Deardorff also claims he was denied the right to due process and given ineffective counsel after the recommended sentence of 8-7 years was not imposed.

Whitney asserts the claim of ineffective counsel creates a conflict of interest. She is asking the court to appoint Deardorff new counsel. Verby took the request under advisement pending further briefings on the matter, court documents indicate.