LOGAN — A 23-year-old Logan man is being bound over for trial on charges of raping three women, who were all acquaintances. Spencer E. Dodd waived his rights to a preliminary hearing, as his defense attorney explained that negotiations on a possible plea agreement were being conducted.
Dodd appeared for the preliminary hearing in 1st District Court, Thursday afternoon. He was previously charged with two counts of rape, two counts of object rape, along with one count of forcible sodomy, all first-degree felonies; and five counts of forcible sexual abuse, a second-degree felony.
Defense attorney Shannon Demler said Dodd wanted to waive the hearing, where a judge would have reviewed prosecutor’s evidence and determined whether or not there was sufficient proof to bind the defendant over for trial. He explained that negotiations on a possible plea deal were already underway but all of the details had not been worked out yet.
In February, Dodd, who is originally from Spokane, Washington and moved to Logan to attend Utah State, was arrested after two women reported being raped during dates with him. The alleged victims each described similar situations where he refused to comply with the women’s lack of consent but later apologized for acting anyway. He was later released from jail on pretrial supervision.
Two weeks later, Dodd was arrested again after a third woman contacted police, alleging that she was also raped by the defendant, while on a date in September 2020. She had reportedly met him on a dating app geared toward members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. They arranged to meet at a house near USU’s campus, where the assault took place.
Officers later reportedly found text messages between Dodd and the woman, apologizing for his actions.
During Thursday’s hearing, Demler asked the court for time to continue negotiating with prosecutors and appear again for a pretrial conference April 20. He also said he was considering having the defendant undergo a psycho-sexual evaluation.
Dodd is currently being held in jail without bail. He could face up to life in prison, if convicted.
Individuals arrested and charged in complaints are presumed innocent unless or until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in court.
will@cvradio.com