Sex offender may face charges in girl's death

BOUNTIFUL — As Walter White sits in the Davis County Jail on a suicide watch, prosecutors are preparing criminal charges to be filed against him.

The convicted sex offender linked to the death of a 16-year-old girl is expected to make his first appearance in Farmington's 2nd District Court on Monday, Davis County prosecutors told the Deseret Morning News.

White, 38, was checked out of Lakeview Hospital and booked into the Davis County Jail early Friday morning on investigation of obstruction of justice, contributing to the delinquency of a minor, distributing a controlled substance and desecration of a body. Bail has been set at $200,000.

"It was expected," Bountiful Police Lt. Randy Pickett said Friday. "He was cooperative like he has been through the entire case."

On Thursday, police found the body of Samantha Mikesell in Mueller Park Canyon. Police said the girl had struck up a friendship with White, who picked her up on Sunday from her job at a Dee's Restaurant. The pair went up the canyon, where White told police the pair took prescription drugs and drank alcohol.

"He says they just went to hike and talk. They were up there quite a bit," Pickett said. White reportedly told police that he woke up, but Mikesell did not.

On Tuesday, a Davis County sheriff's deputy spotted White wandering in the foothills above Bountiful. He was taken to Lakeview Hospital where he was treated for cuts and scratches and released. When police began investigating Mikesell's disappearance, they tracked down White on Wednesday at his Woods Cross apartment.

"He spontaneously gave us just about everything we needed," Bountiful Police Lt. Steve Gray said Friday.

Because of White's medical condition, he was involuntarily committed to the psychiatric ward of Lakeview Hospital for an evaluation until he was booked into the Davis County Jail. A police mug shot released on Friday shows White in a hospital gown. Deep scratches are visible on his face from wandering through the deep brush.

Police and prosecutors are awaiting medical examiner reports on Mikesell, which will include any evidence of sexual assault and toxicology. The results could be weeks away, said Gray.

White was convicted in 1996 of misdemeanor lewdness involving a child stemming from a "peeping Tom" incident involving young girls. He completed his probation, but was placed on Utah's sex offender registry.

Investigators were still looking into Mikesell and White's relationship, which began when she was introduced through his son sometime in the 2005-06 school year, police said. Officers said White maintained the pair were "just friends," but officers said others have come forward suggesting the relationship may have been more than that.

"He said he'd been seeing her every day for the last couple of weeks," Gray said.

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E-mail: bwinslow@desnews.com