BY STEVE KEMME
The Cincinnati Enquirer
HAMILTON -- The trial for a Hamilton man accused of showing pornographic videos to three children will be moved to Hamilton Municipal Court building, because he can't fit through the doors of the Butler County Juvenile Court building.
The juvenile court staff had to search for a courtroom big enough to accommodate Denny Welch, 37, who weighs more than 800 pounds. Juvenile Court Judge David Niehaus said Monday the trial would be June 16 in Hamilton Municipal Court.
"He can get into the municipal court building," the judge said.
Mr. Welch, who is virtually immobile, was taken to Fort Hamilton-Hughes Memorial Hospital last week suffering from heart problems. He was in fair condition Monday, a hospital official said.
"This case has brought a huge amount of stress on him," said his attorney, Leslie Rauh. "He's so scared. He thinks he is going to have to go to jail."
Mr. Welch, who has appeared several times on The Jerry Springer Show, is charged with three counts of disseminating material harmful to juveniles. He is accused of showing pornographic videos to children, ages 10 to 13, at his house between June and December last year.
"We've never had a situation like this before -- obviously," said Toni Pagano, administrative services coordinator for Butler County juvenile court.
Ms. Rauh said Mr. Welch is so handicapped by his condition that he cannot control what anyone does in his house.
"He can't even roll over," she said.
If juveniles come into his house and decide to watch videos, he can't stop them, Ms. Rauh said.
"The responsibility isn't with Dennis," she said. "It's with the parents of the kids. They're the ones who should be cited to court."
Mr. Welch, a former cross-dressing entertainer, is diabetic and is visited by a nurse four times a day.
Judge Niehaus set a pretrial hearing for June 13 to discuss how to get Mr. Welch to the municipal court building and how to handle his medical needs.
The judge said the jury trial should take about eight hours. "I don't know how long he can be in court," Judge Niehaus said. "We may have to break up the trial into two four-hour days."
In 1996, Mr. Springer paid a contractor to tear down an exterior wall of Mr. Welch's home so he could leave the house to receive help at Christ Hospital and Riverfront Diet Clinic in Covington. The "rescue" of Mr. Welch, who had not left his bed for four weeks, was the topic of a Springer show.
Mr. Welch lost about 200 pounds but regained it after he suffered respiratory failure in September.
The juvenile court staff never seriously considered holding the trial in Mr. Welch's home, Ms. Pagano said.
"I don't think the jury and all the other people could fit in there," she said.
