ST. GEORGE —A man who was arrested in March for leading police in a high-speed chase from Cedar City to Parowan was sentenced to prison after he changed his plea to guilty in exchange for the state dropping several charges.
5th District Judge Matthew L. Bell sentenced 30-year-old Darren Elden Green to serve up to five years in Utah State Prison on each third-degree felony charge, including failing to stop at an officer’s signal to stop and one count of failing to register as a sex-offender.
Green was also ordered to serve 180 days in jail on one misdemeanor count of driving under the influence, jail time that he will serve in prison, according to the sentencing order filed with 5th District Court.
The sentence for each charge will run concurrently.
Under the terms of the plea agreement three misdemeanor charges were dismissed, including one count of failing to stop at an officer’s command, driving on a suspended license and operating a vehicle with suspended registration and no insurance, in addition to a traffic infraction that was also dismissed.
The charges stem from an incident on March 9 when Green was stopped by police and then drove off when asked to step out of the vehicle.
Police pursued Green to Parowan at speeds of up to 105 mph, before his truck broke down near the Northern Iron County Landfill. He fled on foot and attempted to hide behind a house, but officers found him and took him into custody.
During an interview with police, Green admitted to drinking beer prior to the incident and told officers he believed there was a warrant for his arrest for failing to register as a sex offender. The defendant’s sex offender status originated from a 2008 felony conviction in Clark County, Nevada, for an attempted sexual assault against a child under 14 years old.
Green pleaded guilty to the charges June 17 and the pre-sentence investigation report was ordered, which included information on Green’s background and current situation, any criminal history and the findings of an assessment conducted to determine the chances of the defendant repeating his crimes.
The defendant was ordered to begin serving his sentence immediately and a transport order to Utah State Prison was signed during Monday’s hearing.
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