PENIS problem!
Predator makes unusual request
An Inverness sexual predator on probation wants a judge's permission to go to Ocala to have his penile implant repaired.
By ABBIE VANSICKLE
Published September 21, 2005
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
INVERNESS - David Spangler, a registered sexual predator, stood before a judge Tuesday morning with an unusual request.
Spangler, 44, sought permission to go to Ocala to have repairs done on his penile implant. He said his current implant makes urination difficult and painful. A condition of Spangler's probation requires him to get a judge's permission to leave the county.
By the end of the hearing, Circuit Judge Ric Howard decided he didn't have enough information to grant or deny Spangler's request. The judge asked for a doctor's note explaining the need for the treatment.
Howard said he needed to be sure the treatment was needed to correct a urinary problem.
"If it's solely for the issue of dealing with impotence, no," Howard said.
The judge then compared Spangler's request with recent stories about the state paying for Viagra for sex offenders. In May, state officials announced they would stop coverage of Viagra and other such drugs for 2-million Medicaid recipients. The decision was made after officials disclosed that more than 200 sex offenders got the drugs through Medicaid.
Spangler, who lives in Inverness, is one of 10 sexual predators currently registered in Citrus County. He said he expects Medicaid to pay for treatment for the implant.
In 1998, he was accused of using a knife and broom to force a 15-year-old girl to have sex with him. He was charged with sexual battery with a deadly weapon, but the charge was reduced to sexual battery as part of a plea bargain that called for him to serve 5 years and 5 months in prison followed by 91/2 years of sex predator probation, according to court records.
The victim's family agreed to the plea deal because they didn't want the girl to have to testify, according to the records.
Spangler told the judge he got the implant years before the incident with the girl to deal with erectile dysfunction. He is disabled, so the surgery was paid for by Medicaid, he said.
"Did the government pay for this penile implant?" Howard asked.
"Yes sir, they did," Spangler replied.
A few years later, he was charged with the sexual battery.
After serving his time in prison, Spangler returned to Inverness, where he is serving probation. A probation official told the judge Spangler is following the requirements of his probation.
Recently, he was one of three sexual offenders allowed to take a voice stress test instead of the standard polygraph that such offenders must take while on probation. Howard made the decision because of Spangler's medical problems, including heart trouble and diabetes. He passed the voice stress analysis, officials said.
Spangler told the judge he needs to go to Marion County for the repairs because that's the location of the closest doctor who can solve the problem. Under the conditions of his probation, he needs to get a judge's permission to leave the county.
If Spangler gets the doctor's note, he needs to show it to his probation officer before going to any appointment, Howard said.
Abbie VanSickle can be reached at 860-7312 or vansickle@sptimes.com Times researcher Caryn Baird contributed to this story.
[Last modified September 21, 2005, 00:23:13]
An Inverness sexual predator on probation wants a judge's permission to go to Ocala to have his penile implant repaired.
By ABBIE VANSICKLE
Published September 21, 2005
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
INVERNESS - David Spangler, a registered sexual predator, stood before a judge Tuesday morning with an unusual request.
Spangler, 44, sought permission to go to Ocala to have repairs done on his penile implant. He said his current implant makes urination difficult and painful. A condition of Spangler's probation requires him to get a judge's permission to leave the county.
By the end of the hearing, Circuit Judge Ric Howard decided he didn't have enough information to grant or deny Spangler's request. The judge asked for a doctor's note explaining the need for the treatment.
Howard said he needed to be sure the treatment was needed to correct a urinary problem.
"If it's solely for the issue of dealing with impotence, no," Howard said.
The judge then compared Spangler's request with recent stories about the state paying for Viagra for sex offenders. In May, state officials announced they would stop coverage of Viagra and other such drugs for 2-million Medicaid recipients. The decision was made after officials disclosed that more than 200 sex offenders got the drugs through Medicaid.
Spangler, who lives in Inverness, is one of 10 sexual predators currently registered in Citrus County. He said he expects Medicaid to pay for treatment for the implant.
In 1998, he was accused of using a knife and broom to force a 15-year-old girl to have sex with him. He was charged with sexual battery with a deadly weapon, but the charge was reduced to sexual battery as part of a plea bargain that called for him to serve 5 years and 5 months in prison followed by 91/2 years of sex predator probation, according to court records.
The victim's family agreed to the plea deal because they didn't want the girl to have to testify, according to the records.
Spangler told the judge he got the implant years before the incident with the girl to deal with erectile dysfunction. He is disabled, so the surgery was paid for by Medicaid, he said.
"Did the government pay for this penile implant?" Howard asked.
"Yes sir, they did," Spangler replied.
A few years later, he was charged with the sexual battery.
After serving his time in prison, Spangler returned to Inverness, where he is serving probation. A probation official told the judge Spangler is following the requirements of his probation.
Recently, he was one of three sexual offenders allowed to take a voice stress test instead of the standard polygraph that such offenders must take while on probation. Howard made the decision because of Spangler's medical problems, including heart trouble and diabetes. He passed the voice stress analysis, officials said.
Spangler told the judge he needs to go to Marion County for the repairs because that's the location of the closest doctor who can solve the problem. Under the conditions of his probation, he needs to get a judge's permission to leave the county.
If Spangler gets the doctor's note, he needs to show it to his probation officer before going to any appointment, Howard said.
Abbie VanSickle can be reached at 860-7312 or vansickle@sptimes.com Times researcher Caryn Baird contributed to this story.
[Last modified September 21, 2005, 00:23:13]