Tampabay: Family death plots land son in prison

Family death plots land son in prison

Peter Hunter, scion of a well-known Clearwater family, had planned to harm or kill members of his family.

By EDIE GROSS

Despite a Clearwater philanthropist's pleas that her son not be sent to jail, an Iowa judge has sentenced Peter Hunter to 10 years in prison for plotting to harm or kill members of his family late last year.

Even though Hunter was accused of placing his mother and brothers on a hit list, Carolyn Hunter asked Iowa District Judge D.J. Stovall to keep her son out of prison and instead put him in a treatment program. Peter Hunter, 50, has bipolar disorder.

But Stovall opted for the maximum penalty available under Hunter's plea agreement. Hunter, who spent several weeks in a Dallas mental health facility before his sentencing last week, will continue to receive treatment for bipolar disorder.

"I think the resolution of this case was fair and appropriate, taking into consideration the somewhat divergent viewpoints of the members of his family regarding what should happen to him," Iowa prosecutor Dan Voogt said in a telephone interview. "It does both protect them and serves to give him the best opportunity for rehabilitation and likewise to be punished for what he did because what he did was serious."

Members of the Hunter family declined to comment. Hunter's attorney, Alfredo Parrish, said he will ask the judge to reconsider the sentence in 60 days.

Parrish said his client was apologetic about the situation. Hunter's outlook has improved dramatically since he began taking medication for his condition, Parrish said.

"It has made a huge difference," he said. "When I spoke with him (last week), he was doing better than I've seen him through this whole process."

Hunter was originally charged with 16 felonies in October 1999 after Des Moines, Iowa, police said he hired a hit man to kill or injure his three younger brothers, his mother and the family accountant.

In August, Hunter pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit attempted murder in connection with attacks planned on brothers Jeff, a Des Moines hotel owner, and Dan, a humorist, songwriter and playwright who lives in Boston. He also admitted to a felony count of arranging to have the family's accountant beat up.

In exchange for Hunter's plea, prosecutors dropped charges relating to attacks Hunter was accused of planning against a third brother and his mother.

Hunter had not been allowed to contact members of his family since shortly after his arrest, but Carolyn Hunter asked Stovall to lift that order last week, Voogt said. The judge agreed that Hunter could have contact with his mother but not with other members of his family.

Carolyn Hunter, 73, and her late husband, Ed, are known for raising contributions for several programs in the Pinellas community. They held benefits for the Upper Pinellas Association for Retarded Citizens, donated money to Morton Plant Hospital and set aside a bird sanctuary on the north end of Clearwater Beach.

The family also owns the historic Clearwater Beach Hotel.

Peter Hunter, a graduate of Princeton University and the Wharton School of Business, once managed his family's regionally famous potato chip company before it was squeezed out of the market by larger firms. He was managing a Des Moines apartment complex for his mother when police filmed him offering a complex maintenance man $180,000 to kill his family and another $2,000 to beat up Jim Dixon, the Hunter family's longtime accountant.

Court documents indicate that Hunter was frustrated that his family left him out of its extensive real estate dealings.

Hunter expressed remorse for his actions during his sentencing, said Voogt, the prosecutor.

"He said he appreciated the opportunity to get treatment," Voogt said. "He said he was sorry for being in this position and sorry for putting his family in this position."