A sentencing hearing for Ross Lebaron, who was recently convicted of multiple charges of sexual assault in a Kane County Court, occurred on the morning of July 1, via Webex. The hearing was initially intended as the conclusion of the sentencing process for Lebaron, resulting the formal determination of how much jail time Lebaron would serve and how many damages he would pay - however, at the request of Lebaron’s attorney, sentencing was delayed due to questions on the dollar amount of pecuniary damages.
Photo courtesy of the Kane County Sheriff's Office.
Said Lebaron’s attorney, “[Utah Rule of Criminal Procedure] 21A requires that when the department of corrections prepares a presentence report that they include a specific statement of pecuniary damages and that they ask for a specific dollar amount, and that’s not been done by the department; all they’ve said is that a restitution hearing should be scheduled in the future.”
There was a value of restitution put forth by the victim and agreed to by the state prosecution - however, Lebaron’s attorney contested that the department of corrections had not provided a sufficient statement of damages for restitution. The judge ordered that there be no dissipation of assets that Lebaron owns or is a beneficiary of - meaning that while the statement of restitution is being put together, Lebaron cannot transfer or change ownership of any assets.
Some sources within Kane County have criticized the delay as legal performance, questioning whether the delay was necessary, with others speculating that remaining in Kane County’s jail is likely preferable to Lebaron over transfer to a more long-term prison facility due to his age and health. Lebaron’s restitution and sentencing hearing was rescheduled for August 5, at 11 a.m.
