CEDAR CITY — A man accused of sexually assaulting a coworker at a Paragonah dairy farm on Halloween morning of 2021 has been found guilty on all counts.
After deliberating for more than six hours on Friday, an eight-member jury in Cedar City found Miguel Angel Leon Gomez, 28, guilty of four separate charges: one count each of rape, forcible sodomy and object rape, all of which are first-degree felonies; and one count of forcible sexual abuse, a second-degree felony.
After polling each of the jurors individually to confirm their decision, 5th District Court Judge Jeffrey C. Wilcox thanked them for their service and set Gomez’s sentencing for June 4 at 8:30 a.m.
Friday’s verdict, which came shortly after 5 p.m., wrapped up an emotional three-day trial that included testimony from different perspectives regarding what transpired inside a shed at the dairy farm the morning of Oct. 31, 2021.
As previously reported, Gomez was arrested in Jerome, Idaho, in January 2023 and extradited to Utah to face the charges associated with the incident.
Prosecutor Shane Klenk, during his closing arguments, described what the 25-year-old woman experienced as “a nightmare of sight, sound, smell and pain” as she unsuccessfully tried to prevent the attack.
“She heard herself telling the defendant over and over again, ‘No! Stop! This isn’t happening!’” Klenk told the jury.
In contrast, Gomez had testified that he and the woman were in a relationship and that the sexual encounter was consensual.
“Ladies and gentlemen, this case pits together two stories with some of the most striking contrasts that you will ever encounter,” Klenk told the jurors. “The defendant’s story is one of deviance, selfishness and predation. (The woman’s) story is one of strength, family and resilience.”
Klenk said the woman has undergone “arduous” counseling and therapy to help her battle post-traumatic stress disorder and other issues. He commended her for her strength in being willing to go back to work at “the very place where the assault occurred.”
“Not because she wasn’t bothered by going back to the shed,” Klenk said. “She continued to work there specifically because of how much it bothered her. She is determined to see that this assault will not define her, that it will not dictate the choices of her life.”
The woman had been the first witness called, taking the stand on Wednesday morning. The following day, Gomez took the stand in his own defense, utilizing the assistance of a Spanish interpreter.
Other witnesses included law enforcement officers who were involved in the investigation and the nurse who had conducted the sex assault examination at the hospital in Beaver. Exhibits admitted as evidence included the medical report, law enforcement officers’ body camera footage, screenshots of text messages between Gomez and the woman, and various photographs of the scene.
Gomez’s defense counsel Joseph Jardine challenged witnesses’ recollections of certain details and highlighted a number of inconsistencies in accounts given at different times.
However, after Jardine had cross-examined the accuser on the stand, Klenk then asked her during redirect: “The main parts of the story that we discussed today, they’re clear in your mind, aren’t they?”
“Yes,” the woman replied.
“No further questions.”
Later, Klenk had called out the defendant’s “unconvincing” claim that he didn’t know the woman’s name when being questioned by police in Idaho, yet had claimed to be in a relationship with her for a period of three or four months.
Contacted via telephone for comment on Monday, the jury foreman told Cedar City News that the “he said, she said” aspect made the case an extremely difficult one, especially considering how much time had transpired since the incident.
“But what we really did is we looked back and said, it seemed impossible in all of our minds, that somebody like her would go through the unbelievable stresses that she went through … that she would have possibly just did that because she was angry or mad or wanted to prove a point,” he said. “It just seemed impossible and implausible at every level, that she had not been violated.
“That’s really what it came down to: we were absolutely 100% convinced that this young lady had been violated,” the foreman added. “In the end, there was no way that as a jury, we could say, ‘You know what? We just don’t have enough information.’ We had enough information to honestly feel that she had been violated on every count.”
The foreman also noted that the attorneys on both sides did commendable work in presenting their cases.
“The defense attorney did a fantastic job,” he said. “If I ever need an attorney, I want to call him. I was extremely impressed with his knowledge and his ability.”
Contacted for comment afterward, Deputy Iron County Attorney Trajan Evans praised Klenk’s work on the case.
“I can’t say enough about Shane Klenk,” Evans said. “These cases, and this case in particular, are so challenging. There are so many dead ends, but Shane worked tirelessly to bring the victim justice she deserved.”
Klenk also provided a written statement to Cedar City News shortly after the verdict was rendered, saying, “This was a brutal crime and the outcome is just.”
The rest of Klenk’s statement reads as follows:
The victim in this case is one of the strongest and bravest that I have had the opportunity to work with. I hope this verdict helps her to heal and find peace. I’m grateful for the community members that heard the evidence, considered it carefully and applied the law. I am also grateful for prosecutor Trajan Evans, investigator Sgt. Thomas Byrd and victim’s advocate Jessica Cramer who worked tirelessly throughout the entire process. So many other good people worked behind the scenes to make this possible. These cases are exceptionally difficult for many reasons, but truth prevailed.
As the trial concluded Friday afternoon Wilcox ordered a presentence investigation report be completed prior to Gomez’s sentencing in June. According to Utah law, Gomez faces potential penalties of five years to life in prison for the three first-degree felony convictions and one to 15 years for the second-degree felony.
At his sentencing hearing on June 4, Gomez ordered to serve a minimum of five years in Utah State Prison. Fifth District Judge Jeffrey C. Wilcox imposed three terms of 5 years to life for the three first-degree felonies and one term of 1-15 years for the second-degree felony. All four terms are to run concurrently, the court ordered.
Updated June 17, 11 a.m. to add the terms of Gomez’s sentencing on June 4.
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