LOGAN — A judge has ordered Brevan Baugh be released from prison after the 44-year-old Providence doctor’s conviction for sexually abusing a child was overturned. Judge Angela Fonnesbeck said the defendant was entitled to be released since he now stands under no criminal verdict.
The Thursday ruling in 1st District Court came after the Utah Court of Appeals reversed Baugh’s conviction in January, determining that the jury was not instructed correctly during the defendant’s December 2020 trial and may have been prejudiced.
Defense attorney Patricia Geary-Glenn had filed an expedited motion for release. She said since Baugh’s conviction was vacated, there wasn’t any reason he should still be kept in prison.
Cache County Deputy Attorney Jacob Gordon opposed Baugh’s release. He argued that the defendant was a flight risk and a danger to the emotional and physical wellbeing of the alleged victim.
Geary-Glenn argued that Baugh had been granted bail previously before the 2020 trial and should be released immediately.
Judge Angela Fonnesbeck agreed with the defense, and said she didn’t believe Baugh would flee or be a threat if released. As a precaution though, she ordered the defendant to have no contact with the alleged victim.
Dec. 5, 2020, a jury of four women and four men found Baugh guilty on one of two counts of aggravated sexual abuse of a child, a first-degree felony. The split verdict was reached after more than eight hours of deliberation.
The jury’s decision came after two days of testimony. It included the then teenage victim, tearfully describing how Baugh allegedly made her touch him inappropriately on several occasions.
Baugh took the witness stand during the trial. He denied that he ever abused the girl.
In the Court of Appeals’ ruling, Judge David N. Mortensen concluded that because defense counsel performed deficiently when they didn’t request that the jury receive proper unanimity instruction, and because that deficiency prejudiced Baugh’s defense, it undermined the court’s confidence in the trial’s outcome. The decision vacated Baugh’s conviction and remanded it back to Judge Fonnesbeck.
During Thursday’s hearing, Gordon said the Utah Attorney General’s Office was reviewing the case to determine whether to appeal the verdict to the Utah Supreme Court. They are expected to make a decision by March 16.
Judge Fonnesbeck scheduled a status hearing for March 28. By then, prosecutors should know whether the case is being appealed, or if they plan try the case again or dismiss it.
Baugh was not present during Thursday’s hearing because of a scheduling conflict at the Gunnison Prison. Geary-Glenn said he had waived his right to appear so that it wouldn’t be further delayed.
will@cvradio.com