September 9, 2016 at 1:44 p.m.
Rhinelander man accused of molesting girls in Walmart now held on $5,000 cash bail
Preliminary hearing set for Sept. 15
Rhinelander man accused of molesting girls in Walmart now held on $5,000 cash bail
John J. Donato is charged with first-degree sexual assault of a child (sexual contact with a child under age 13), a class B felony and second-degree sexual assault of a child, a class C felony. The second charge was added in an amended criminal complaint filed Tuesday at what was scheduled to be a preliminary hearing on the first charge.
Donato failed to appear for that hearing, causing Branch I Judge Patrick O'Melia to issue an arrest warrant. The Rhinelander Police Department arrested Donato later Thursday.
After his initial appearance before O'Melia Aug. 24 on the class C felony, Donato's bond was set at $500 cash. However, he suffered a heart attack and had to be airlifted to Wausau Aspirus Hospital from Ministry St. Mary's Hospital for minor surgery. O'Melia amended Donato's bond to a signature bond because of the health concerns. When he made his adjourned initial appearance with attorney Chad Lynch Aug. 29, he entered not guilty pleas and the date for the preliminary hearing was set.
Between the time he was charged with twice groping a 13-year-old girl in the school supply section at Walmart and the preliminary hearing date, a second alleged victim, an 8-year-old girl, came forward to claim Donata had also touched her.
Lynch told the court his client had suffered a slip and fall accident and sustained a "couple of broken ribs" but he did not have medical documentation to convince O'Melia to not issue the arrest warrant. He was able to provide that documentation to Branch II Judge Michael Bloom at Friday's bond hearing.
Despite Donato's health issues, district attorney Mike Schiek said he could see no reason the defendant could not be monitored while he was held in custody and asked Bloom to set a "significant cash bond" in light of the new charge.
Lynch argued that Donato was indigent and would not have been able to post the $500 cash original set by O'Melia. He asked Bloom to continue the signature bond.
Despite the documentation Lynch provided, Bloom said the seriousness of the new charge and the fact that Donato did not attend the preliminary hearing warrants a cash bond.
"Failure to appear is failure to appear and the primary purpose of bond is to insure appearance and future proceedings," Bloom said. "That and the seriousness of the new charge, a class B felony, calls for some cash in this case."
Schiek asked that all other conditions of the signature bond, including no entry onto Walmart property and no contact with either of the alleged victims or any other minors, remain in place. Bloom granted that request.
If convicted, Donato faces a maximum penalty of up to 60 years in prison for the Class B felony and 40 years in prison and not more than $100,000 in fines for the class C felony.
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