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PARK CITY — Another former deputy accused of misconduct in the Daggett County Jail has resolved his case.
Rodrigo Toledo, 42, pleaded guilty in Summit County Justice Court last week to one count of official misconduct, a class B misdemeanor. The Sept. 12 plea will be held in abeyance for six months, after which it may be dismissed.
Should Toledo commit any new offenses during those six months, a conviction in the case may be entered and sentence imposed.
Toledo was among four Daggett County Jail employees charged in the case, along with the county's former sheriff, Jerry Jorgensen.
According to the charges, the jail employees used a Taser to assault inmates in the jail, and they let inmates shock one another.
The scandal led to the closure of the Daggett County Jail, a primary source of revenue for the rural community. After the case was filed, defense attorneys successfully lobbied to move the case to Summit County, arguing that many members of the rural community "may be angry" at the men for the county's loss of income.
While Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes called the incidents "unbelievably inhumane conduct and a reprehensible miscarriage of justice," an attorney for one of the deputies described it this month as "fun and games" that resulted from an overly familiar relationship between the inmates and their jailers.
Toledo is accused of being present when former deputy Joshua Cox, who faced the most serious allegations, used his Taser on inmates. Prosecutors say Toledo did nothing about the incident and then failed to report it.
Another former deputy, Logan Walker, 27, faces the same allegation. Walker is also charged with official misconduct, a class B misdemeanor. He is due in court for a pretrial conference on Nov. 21.
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Ex-Daggett sheriff, 2 deputies plead guilty to misconduct in county jail
Jerry Jorgensen, the former Daggett County sheriff and a 40-year law enforcement veteran, pleaded guilty Wednesday in a case involving accusations of misconduct by four of his employees in the county jail.Cox, 27, pleaded guilty earlier this month to four of the 11 counts against him: two counts of aggravated assault and one count of transporting a weapon into a secure area, all third-degree felonies; and one count of theft, a class A misdemeanor.
A sentencing hearing for Cox is scheduled for Nov. 6.
Jorgensen pleaded guilty in the same hearing to official misconduct, a class B misdemeanor, with the plea held in abeyance for six months.
Former Lt. Benjamin Lail, 32, pleaded guilty to reckless endangerment, a class A misdemeanor, reduced from a single count of third-degree felony aggravated assault. He was sentenced to complete one year of court-ordered supervision. If he violates the terms of his parole, Lail will be ordered to serve a year in jail. Email: mromero@deseretnews.com Twitter: McKenzieRomero
