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- Utah prosecutors are seeking to dismiss labor trafficking charges against Rubicon Contracting LLC without prejudice.
- Defense attorneys argue for dismissal with prejudice, citing prosecutorial misconduct.
- The case involves allegations of exploiting 150 Mexican workers under H-2B visas.
BOUNTIFUL — Attorneys for the owners of a Davis County general contracting company accused of labor trafficking say they don't mind if the charges against their client are dismissed; they just want to make sure prosecutors are unable to refile the charges in the future.
Last week, the Utah Attorney General's Office filed a motion asking for charges of aggravated human trafficking against Rubicon Contracting LLC to be dismissed without prejudice because of a pending federal investigation. A case dismissed "without prejudice" can still be refiled at a later date.
But attorneys for Rudy Larsen, the founder and owner of Rubicon, and his wife, Jena Larsen, say the case should be dismissed "with prejudice," meaning prosecutors would be unable to refile the case.
"Staring down the barrel of dismissal for lack of probable cause, a Franks hearing, and the possibility of sanctions, the state preemptively moved to dismiss without prejudice as a means to mitigate the chances of adverse rulings by this court and evade accountability for its misconduct. The state's proffered reason for dismissal— a newly initiated federal investigation by the Department of Justice — is pretense and thinly veiled forum shopping. The federal investigation is neither new nor independent," according to the Larsens' court filing on Wednesday opposing the motion to dismiss without prejudice.
In November 2023, Rudy Larsen and six executive members of Rubicon Contracting were charged with 14 counts each of aggravated human trafficking, a first-degree felony. The group is accused of recruiting about 150 people from Mexico to work for the company using H-2B visas. But once in Utah, charging documents allege the victims were paid very little, forced to live in deplorable housing provided by Rubicon while also being forced to pay rent under the threat of deportation.
During a preliminary hearing in December, 2nd District Judge Rita Cornish had tense exchanges with assistant attorney general Kaytlin Beckett and seemed to indicate the state was not meeting its burden of proof.
"I am very troubled by the approach the state has taken here," the judge said. "I've got a lot of questions for the state about the evidence, about what their theory of the case is. I've got 14 counts, and every time I press the state, I get a different answer as to what the theory of the count is."
A Franks hearing, which is used to determine whether false statements or significant omissions were used by an investigator in an affidavit to get a judge to sign a search warrant, was originally scheduled to be held on Monday for warrants served in the Rubicon investigation used to collect evidence.
In their opposition to dismissal, attorneys for Rubicon note that the federal investigation "involves the same allegations, the same prosecutor, and the same investigative unit," and that the court should be allowed to issue its rulings first before both sides start over with a federal case.
"The Larsens and their codefendants have spent 15 months intensely litigating first-degree felony charges that expose them to up to life in prison, incurring massive emotional and financial costs," the motion continues. "The work done by the Larsens, the other defendants, and this court to sort through the state's haphazard approach to the presentation of evidence at the preliminary hearing has been significant."
The motion by the state to dismiss the charges without prejudice is the latest example of what defense attorneys call pervasive "prosecutorial misconduct."
"The deep personal, emotional, reputational and financial harm the state's misconduct has caused the Larsens, their family, their businesses, and codefendants is unconscionable. It represents a deep stain on the Utah Attorney General's Office and the state of Utah. Hiding behind immunity, qualified or otherwise, members of the prosecution team can sleep well, resting assured that the abuses of their extraordinary power will have no material blowback on them, their careers or their lives," according to the motion. "Personal reputations, promising careers, and successful, growing businesses have been left in tatters. Nothing could ever right the state's wrongs."
However, defense attorneys say dismissing the case due to "a lack of probable cause and prosecutorial misconduct" would be a step in the right direction.
