Idaho Man Who Admitted Felony Battery Against 15-Year-Old Gets Treatment Rider Instead of Immediate Prison Term

A 22-year-old Idaho man who had recently returned from a Latter-day Saint mission told a judge he had just broken up with his girlfriend on the night of a sexual assault on a 15-year-old girl in his Tesla, for which he pleaded guilty to felony battery.

Krew Zaugg avoided an immediate prison term and was instead ordered into a treatment programme of up to a year.

In court, her mother described panic attacks, and the girl wrote that she now sleeps on the couch and has become 'a joke' in her town. Prosecutors had sought four years fixed and 16 years indeterminate, potentially totalling 20 years.

Family Says Tesla Doors Were Locked

The girl met Zaugg on Snapchat, where she told him she was 15, EastIdahoNews reported. He picked her up on the night of 4 May 2025. He was 21 at the time.

Her mother told the court that the Tesla's doors were locked and that her daughter could not get out. She said the assault was violent and forceful and left the girl with bruises.

Prosecutors asked for the case details to be sealed, so much of what happened inside the car has not been made public.

Zaugg was originally charged with two felonies, rape of a victim under 16 and lewd conduct with a child under 16. Under a plea agreement reached in June, he pleaded guilty to an amended felony count of battery with intent to commit a serious felony, and the lewd conduct charge was dismissed.

The agreement carried no recommended sentence and was not binding on the court, leaving the judge to determine the sentence within the applicable legal limits.

Two Sides of One Courtroom

At the sentencing hearing on Monday 26 October 2026, the girl's close family sat on one side of the courtroom in Idaho Falls. On the other side sat more than 40 people who appeared to be there to support Zaugg.

Her sister, in a statement read by victim-witness coordinator Pam Millhouse, said the girl had been lonely after the recent death of her grandfather. She called the assault a 'deliberate and evil act'.

Her stepmother said the girl had become too frightened to do things she used to enjoy and had developed bulimia. Her father said the trauma would last, even with therapy that had helped her.

Her mother described a daughter who is now socially withdrawn, hypervigilant and distrustful of men, and who has panic attacks. She told the court that Zaugg's family and friends had harassed the girl online.

In a letter, the girl wrote that she had not left the house since her grandfather died. She said she now sleeps on the couch, takes Benadryl to sleep, and has become a joke in the town because of the comments posted about her.

Defendant Describes His State of Mind

When Zaugg addressed the court, he said that on the night of the assault he had just broken up with his girlfriend and was feeling sad, lonely and miserable.

He told the judge he had made an impulsive decision and had not intended to hurt her. He also admitted that he lied to police at first because he was afraid.

Prosecutor Steven Haderlie asked for four years fixed and 16 years indeterminate, a potential 20-year sentence. He pointed out that Zaugg was college-aged and the girl was a high school freshman, that she had clearly given her age on Snapchat before they met, and that force was involved. A sentence, he argued, should deter others.

Defence lawyer Michael Winchester asked for probation or a rider. He said Zaugg had no criminal history and a low likelihood of reoffending, and argued the case did not call for a 20-year sentence, while acknowledging the real harm done.

Judge Orders Treatment Instead of Prison

District Judge Michael Whyte placed Zaugg on retained jurisdiction, known in Idaho as a rider, a period of incarceration and treatment after which the judge decides between probation and prison, KIFI reported. He will spend up to a year in a correctional facility completing treatment and rehabilitation programmes.

When the rider ends, Whyte will decide whether to release him on probation or send him to prison on an underlying sentence of four years fixed and up to 10 years indeterminate, a total of 14 years. Zaugg must register as a sex offender, pay at least £3,000 ($4,000) in fines and fees and have no contact with the girl for 14 years.

Whyte noted that Zaugg's LSI score, an assessment of the risk of reoffending, was 3, the lowest he had seen, though such a score is not a guarantee of future behaviour. But he did not soften his words. 'What you did was horrible,' the judge told him. 'You can't take it back, you can't fix it.'

He also turned to the supporters in the gallery and told them to stop any online attacks on the girl, whose mother had told the court that Zaugg's family and friends had harassed her online.

If you have been affected by sexual violence, you can contact Rape Crisis on 0808 500 2222 in England and Wales, or RAINN on 1-800-656-4673 in the United States.