FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
| Date: | March 9, 2020 |
| Contact: | Emily Lowe Public Information Officer 208-287-7700 |
| RE: | State v. Sherri Watring Sentencing |
BOISE – Sherri Watring, 53, was sentenced Friday to 1.5 years in prison for elder abuse.
In December 2019, a jury found Ms. Watring guilty on two felony counts – abuse and neglect of a vulnerable adult under circumstances likely to produce great bodily harm and exploitation of a vulnerable adult in excess of $1,000, as well as a misdemeanor petit theft charge.
The crimes occurred between January 2016 and February 2018, but Ms. Watring had been working as the elderly couple’s caregiver for about 7 years. Ms. Watring had the male victim cremated following his death in Feb. 2018 without the family’s knowledge. A jury found her guilty of stealing the ashes and urn of the elderly male, a decorated World War II veteran, and spreading the ashes. She also neglected the female victim by failing to provide adequate nutrition and performing improper medical treatments. The woman died under hospice care in June 2018. Finally, the jury found her guilty of exploiting the couple by taking in excess of $1,000 from them.
The Ada County Prosecutor’s Office requested a sentence of 10 years in prison with two years fixed. A parole period, prosecutors argued at sentencing, would be appropriate so Ms. Watring could not be a caretaker in this capacity to anyone else while supervised.
In imposing a sentence, Ada County District Judge Jason Scott stated that punishment was appropriate but he indicated time under supervision was not necessary to ensure the defendant would or could no longer work in the field.
“That, it seems to me, is something that will happen naturally by virtue of the conviction in this case,” Judge Scott said.
He sentenced Ms. Watring to serve 1.5 years fixed time in prison.
“We hope she (Ms. Watring) will spend her time in detention reflecting on the actions that placed her there,” said the victims’ family.
The FACES of Hope Victim Center assist victims of elder abuse. To learn more about elder abuse visit the center’s website www.facesofhopevictimcenter.org.