Dotson Must Face Assault Charge Despite Wife’s Effort to Drop Case

Gary Dotson must face a wife battering charge despite her effort to drop the case against the convicted rapist who was released from prison in 1985 when his alleged rape victim recanted her testimony, a judge ruled Friday.

Cook County Circuit Judge William Ward Jr. ruled that prosecutors could proceed with the battery case against Dotson even though his wife, Camille, 26, said that she wanted to drop the charge she brought against him on Aug. 2.

“It’s the state’s prerogative to see if they can prove a charge once it’s been brought before the court,” Ward said. “If they (prosecutors) can still prove the criminal charge, they have the right to do so.”

Objects to Proceedings

Dotson’s lawyer, Edward Barron, objected to continuation of the case, contending that the court had no way to prove the battery charge unless Mrs. Dotson testified.

Prosecutors said that they would subpoena Mrs. Dotson back to court on Aug. 27, when the case was set for trial. She could be cited for contempt of court if she refuses to testify, they said.

The Dotsons were married about a year after he was released from prison, based on the recantation testimony of Cathleen Crowell Webb of New Hampshire.

The filing of the battery charge by Mrs. Dotson prompted the Illinois Department of Corrections to order Dotson jailed pending the outcome of a review of terms of his probation on the rape conviction.

Put on Lifetime Probation

Dotson, 30, was placed on lifetime probation after having his rape sentence commuted by Gov. James R. Thompson in 1985. A condition of his probation is that Dotson not drink any alcoholic beverages.

In addition to the battery case, the Illinois Prisoner Review Board will review Dotson’s March conviction for drunken driving and three other arrests for traffic violations.

Dotson, who served six years of his 25- to 50-year prison term on the rape conviction, has been held at Cook County jail since his arrest on the battery charge.