Carlos Sosa booking photo from the Cache County Jail.
LOGAN — A 38-year-old Layton man has been ordered to remain in a group home and receive treatment for sexually abusing a Logan girl more than 17 years ago. Carlos Sosa avoided any further incarceration after a defense attorney described how the defendant suffers from schizophrenia.
Sosa was sentenced Monday morning in 1st District Court. He previously accepted a plea deal, pleading guilty to sex abuse of a child, a second-degree felony.
Defense attorney Craig Bainum said Sosa suffers from mental health issues and hears voices. He explained how the defendant is in a group home, monitored 24-hours a day, and deserved a second chance.
Sosa briefly told the court, he regretted what he had done. He also apologized to the victim and everyone else that had been hurt.
Cache County Attorney Dane Murray recognized Sosa had mental health challenges but explained there was also a victim dealing with what happened for the rest of her life. He asked the court to still consider sentencing the defendant to jail.
Judge Angela Fonnesbeck said this was one of the most complicated cases she had ever had to deal with. She noted how the defendant and victim were both suffering.
The victim didn’t speak during the hearing but walked out of the courtroom when it was determined Sosa would not be incarcerated.
Judge Fonnesbeck told Sosa that putting him in jail or prison would put others at risk because of his mental condition. She said the best option would be for him to remain in the group home, receive treatment and have no contact with the victim.
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