CEDAR CITY, Utah, March 22, 2024 (Gephardt Daily) — A judge, as the saying goes, “threw the book” at a Cedar City child sex offender.
A 5th District Court judge in Cedar City delivered the maximum sentence in a child sexual exploitation case, the Iron County Attorney’s Office said online, the judge citing Patrick Aaron Merrifield’s disrespect for the law in ignoring the terms of his parole from Colorado’s prison as well continuing to exploit children sexually.
At Merrifield’s Thursday sentencing, Judge Ann Marie McIff Allen ordered him to serve up to 15 years in prison on his latest charges of child exploitation.
Merrifield’s arrest last fall followed the Wheat Ridge Police Department in Boulder, Colorado, alerting the Iron County Sheriff’s Office of his relocation without complying with sex offender registration requirements, a stipulation of his parole terms, prosecutors said.
“Upon executing a search warrant at Merrifield’s residence, law enforcement officers uncovered disturbing evidence, including sexual images of children on digital devices.”
Merrifield, 39, was found to have possessed and viewed child pornography including imagery of prepubescent females involved in sex acts, according to the press release, plus many other disturbing images.
“The deviant and selfish desires of the defendant are what create the demand for such material,” Chief Deputy Iron County Attorney Shane Klenk said during Merrifield’s sentencing hearing.
Klenk underscored Merrifield’s history, including previous charges for similar offenses in Colorado and instances of contempt of court, as documented in court records.
“The defendant’s track record reveals a pattern of non-compliance and disregard for law.” Merrifield admitted to viewing the child pornography since his relocation to Utah during police interrogation.
