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Prosecutors move to drop charges against Picabo Street

Michelle L. Price
Associated Press
FILE - In this Feb.16, 2016 file photo, Olympic gold-medal skier Picabo Street looks on in the court, in Park City, Utah. Utah prosecutors said this week that domestic violence charges against Street should be dismissed. Street faced misdemeanor domestic violence and assault charges after prosecutors said she threw her 76-year-old father down the stairs and locked him in the basement during a fight at her home near Park City. Her lawyer contends she was defending herself during the Dec. 23 incident. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer, Pool, File)
AP | POOL AP

SALT LAKE CITY — Utah prosecutors moved to drop domestic violence charges against Olympic gold-medal skier Picabo Street after she was accused of throwing her father down the stairs and locking him in the basement of her home.

Street faced misdemeanor domestic violence and assault charges after the fight with her 76-year-old father near Park City. Her lawyer contends that she was defending herself during the Dec. 23 incident.

Prosecutors said in court documents filed Thursday that they have learned of additional witness statements that led them to believe the case should not be handled in court. Instead, they recommend it be sent to a state office that investigates abuse of elder and vulnerable adults.



A judge has not yet signed off on the move. Street had turned down a plea deal, and a trial had been scheduled for May.

Court records did not include any details about the witness statements.




Phone messages left with prosecutor Ivy Telles and Street’s attorney, Joe Wrona, were not immediately returned Friday.

Nels Holmgren, the director of Utah’s Division of Aging and Adult Services, said he could not comment on specific cases but that his division had not been involved in the Street case.

Generally, when allegations of elder abuse are reported to the division, investigators will assess the person’s situation and try to connect them with services they may need or law enforcement, who would remove them from a home, Holmgren said.

Prosecutors said Street started the December fight that left cuts on Roland Street’s elbow and neck. He told police that his daughter started yelling after he hit her house with his car while trying to drive away in snowy weather and that a physical fight broke out after they went back inside.

Roland Street has not been charged. His daughter told 911 dispatchers that she “put” her dad down the stairs after he pulled her hair and scratched her face, according to a recording of the call. Her mother can be heard in the background disputing that description.

Picabo Street cares for her aging parents as well as her children, her defense attorney said. Street was the one who called 911 for help the day of the fight, Wrona said.

The skier has remained free on bail.