Pretrial conference set for early December

EPHRATA — Former Warden Fire Department Assistant Chief Marty Whitney plead not guilty to charges of third-degree rape of a child Monday during a Grant County Superior Court hearing.

Whitney, accompanied by his attorney Garth Dano entered his plea days after being formally accused of molesting his family's 16-year-old babysitter from mid-June to mid-July of this year.

Judge Ken Jorgensen, at the request of deputy prosecutor Carolyn Fair determined that Whitney, while free on his own recognizance, cannot have any contact with the victim, the victim's families or any witnesses to the case.

Furthermore, Jorgensen determined that Whitney cannot have any unsupervised contact with his children.

Dano said that such stipulations are "pretty standard" when dealing with charges like the ones facing Whitney, although he said he disagreed with them.

"(Whitney) has denied (the charges)," Dano said. "He came here voluntarily without an arrest warrant." Fair was unavailable for comment.

A conviction on charges of third-degree rape of a child carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison and/or a $10,000 fine.

A pretrial conference has been set for Dec. 7.