Jeffrey Thomas Reed, 24, will spend six months in the Grand County Jail for two counts of sexual exploitation of a child, a second degree felony.
“I could send you to two consecutive terms of prison, one to 15 years,” said Judge Lyle Anderson of the Seventh District Court.
Reed was originally charged with eleven counts of sexual exploitation of a child when he was arrested by Moab City Police on Nov. 26, 2013.
Reed had over 184 video images of child pornography were found on his lap top in his home, stated Moab City Police detective Craig Shumway in the fact sheet related to the case.
Detectives Chase Thomas and Eric Brown from the Internet Crime Against Children conducted an investigation, discovering eleven files were downloaded between May 23 and Sept. 3 of 2013.
Reed told Anderson in court that the children ranged from ages two month to 15 years.
“He has an extremely limited criminal history,” said Grand County Attorney Andrew Fitzgerald. “What we are going on is what the Attorney General’s office had recommended for previous cases: six months in jail and focus on the treatment.”
Fitzgerald said that there was no evidence that Reed produced any images.
“He downloaded them,” he said. “He was quite frank with investigators and showed some indication that he knew he had a problem. He made admissions to officers that he needed to change.”
Don Torgerson, the defendant’s attorney, said that Reed was frank with him about use of child pornography for sexual gratification.
“He has struggled with these issues for some time,” Torgerson said. “He said he was in too deep and didn’t know how to fix it. This is a catalyst for him to fix it. We ask the court to follow the recommendation of the Attorney General’s office.”
Anderson sentenced Reed to two terms of up to 15 years, but no less than one year, to be served consecutively. However, the execution of the sentenced is suspended upon the fulfillment of Reed serving six months in the Grand County Jail, paying a fine of $1024, completing a sex specific assessment, and completing the requirements of 36 months of probation. Upon release from jail, Reed may be subject to a curfew and wear a GPS monitor.
