: 'I did what my mom wanted'
A Nampa man speaks out about his elder-abuse case after being sentenced to probation and 30 days.
BY KRISTIN RODINE
Copyright: © 2010 Idaho Statesman
07/23/10
David Nicks speaks lovingly of his mother, a fervent NASCAR fan who crocheted dozens of hats for charity and was determined to avoid doctors and nursing homes.
But all the public knows about Verda Nicks is the emaciated, immobile 92-year-old whom Nampa police found Nov. 17 in sheets covered with feces, urine and flies, sparking an elder-abuse investigation officials called the most appalling they had ever seen.
On Thursday afternoon, a judge sentenced 56-year-old David Nicks to three years probation and a month in jail for felony abuse or neglect of a vulnerable adult. His jail term will be postponed until after his conviction is appealed. His identical twin, Danny, awaits sentencing on an identical charge Aug. 27.
Judge James Morfitt noted that David Nicks has no criminal record beyond two drunken driving convictions and poses no apparent danger to the community.
"My biggest concern is that he shows no remorse," the judge said.
"I didn't do anything wrong, so what's to be remorseful of?" Nicks told the Idaho Statesman a few minutes later. "I don't think any of this should've happened at all. I did what my mom wanted me to do."
HELPING OUT OR LEGAL CARETAKERS?
The twins grew up in Nampa, then went their own ways in the 1970s, serving in separate branches of the military and raising families.
"Then we got divorced within three months of each other, and we've been together ever since," David said.
"That was in '96," Danny added. Cautious because his sentencing is still pending, Danny spoke little during the interview but frequently filled in gaps in his brother's sentences.
The twins were living near Eugene, Ore., where they built "street rods" and other custom cars, when they visited their mother in 2003 and noticed she was barely eating.
So they gave up their business and moved back to Nampa, David said, "just because she needed help and no one else in the family would help."
The twins lived in a fifth-wheel trailer behind their mother's rented home on 7th Avenue South, cooking for her, doing her shopping and taking over the garden that she loved but couldn't work in anymore, they said.
Their statements that they took care of their mother led to the charges against them. Although their attorneys said they were not Verda Nicks' "caretakers" under Idaho law, the prosecution, judge and jury disagreed.
And Morfitt rejected David's argument that he was just following his mother's wishes.
"At some point in time, a person who has an elderly parent to care for has to make decisions," he said. "I doubt she wanted to be in that condition.
"And even if she expressed that view, you had the obligation to do what was necessary for her well-being."
That verdict sends a chilling message to people who try to take care of aging parents, defense attorney Bill Schwartz said, noting that Verda Nicks had other children who lived nearby but did nothing to help her and were not charged.
"If you do nothing, you're better off than if you do something," Schwartz said. "He did a horrible job, I'll agree to that. But it wasn't because of intention."
David said he believes his mother would be alive today if authorities had not removed her from her home.
"She told me if she was ever in a nursing home she'd will herself to die, and that's what she did," he said.
Verda Nicks died Dec. 26, but her sons are not accused of causing her death.
SOURCE: IdahoStatesman.Com
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