Conviction of 'Dr. John' upheld

The Utah Supreme Court has upheld the conviction of Nebraska resident John Haltom, also known as "Dr. John," who was found guilty of dealing harmful materials to a minor, a third-degree felony.

Haltom was convicted of the charge in 2003 after a two-day trial, received a suspended prison sentence and served 30 days in the Salt Lake County Jail.

The original charge emerged after a 17-year-old girl, the daughter of Midvale's assistant police chief, bought a racy video at Dr. John's Lingerie and Novelty Boutique, 6885 S. State, as part of a sting operation.

A store worker asked Haltom to look at the girl's driver's license to make sure she was not using fake identification. After his arrest, Haltom argued that he assumed the employee had checked the girl's identification to verify her age.

Haltom argued in his appeal that the evidence presented against him fell short of showing he was reckless when he permitted the girl to buy the video. However, the Utah Supreme Court justices said in their ruling that the U. S. Supreme Court "has imposed no constitutional impediment to making merely negligent conduct criminal, and neither do we."

The Utah Supreme Court's decision, released Friday, unanimously upheld a ruling made in 2005 by the Utah Court of Appeals regarding the original 2000 district court conviction.

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E-mail: lindat@desnews.com