KENNEWICK, Wash. — Defense attorneys asked a judge Thursday to excuse himself from sentencing a Benton City man convicted of severely injuring two motorcyclists in a July crash.

Superior Court Judge Bruce Spanner agreed to step down on the Benton County case of Chad Michael Sehnert.

The motion, filed just a couple hours before the afternoon hearing, didn't give a detailed reason for the request to change the judge.

A motion to recuse does not have to list specifics for why a lawyer is challenging the individual, in this case the judge.

"I believe that fair and impartial sentencing and trial in this case cannot be had before the Honorable Bruce Spanner," Sal Mendoza Jr. wrote.

He used another lawyer's prepared template for the motion, scratching off "hearings" and replacing it with "sentencing," but leaving in the reference to a trial. 

Sehnert's sentencing was delayed to next Thursday so a different judge can hear the matter. 

Spanner was not assigned to Sehnert's case but handled the criminal docket Thursday. Judge Craig Matheson, who typically presides over that docket, has been out of the office this week. 

The victims, Jan Rennebohm and Joe Toregrase of Prosser, made the trip to court for the hearing because Deputy Prosecutor Megan Killgore only learned of the motion just before the lunch hour. She was unable to reach them beforehand about the delay. 

Sehnert entered an Alford plea Jan. 5 to two counts of vehicular assault with aggravating circumstances for the excessive injuries to Rennebohm and Toregrase.

The Alford plea means he denied committing the crime but believed prosecutors had enough evidence to convict him.

He also pleaded guilty to a January 2011 case for attempting to elude police, a felony, and DUI, a gross misdemeanor.

The sentencing range for the vehicular assault is one year and 10 months to two years and five months.

Killgore has said she will recommend a two-year prison term.

Sehnert was high on methadone when his truck slammed into Toregrase's motorcycle July 21 on the Old Inland Empire Highway outside of Benton City.

Toregrase has told the Herald that Sehnert's 2012 GMC truck then reversed over him, hitting him again and losing a tire before the truck continued down the road.

When sheriff's deputies found Sehnert in his truck, he claimed that he had been in a hit-and-run with another vehicle that took off.

Deputies found his tire near the crushed Harley-Davidson Road King motorcycle, along with a mile-long gouge in the road from the cycle to Sehnert's truck. Sehnert was arrested and taken to jail that night.

Rennebohm and Toregrase, who have been together for about 23 years, both lost their left leg as a result of the crash. They have prosthetic legs, but often move around in wheelchairs until they get more used to walking.

The couple also have limited use of their left arms and hands.

Rennebohm, 62, and Toregrase, 46, have said they feel cheated by the justice system because Sehnert will serve a relatively short prison term while their future is uncertain as they learn to function again and adjust to a new normal.

— TriCity Herald