Jack Didley’s Bouncer Gets 19 Days in Jail + 345 on Work Release
The former general manager and bouncer at Jack Didley's in downtown Kennewick has been sentenced.
Due to an arrangement made by a Benton County judge, Matthew Hibbard, 41, will spend 19 days in jail for dropping Ben Ensign on his head July 4, 2012. He was also given 345 days of "work release."
Club owner Todd Jones issued a statement following the sentencing:
"Matt is not the type of person that belongs in jail. We hear about our system overflowing with people being released because of lack of space and these are people that need to be there."
Prosecutors said Hibbard used excessive force against Ensign when evicting him from the club. Ensign suffered a skull fracture and severe brain injuries. His family indicated during Hibbard's trial that Ensign will likely spend the rest of his life in an assisted-care facility.
Ben Ensign's mother, Sheila Barichello, said after the proceedings:
"Is it the sentence we were after? ...not really. But I also came into this this morning with total resolve, because no matter if his sentence was a life sentence, whether it was one month or life, it's not going to change Ben."