By Myrna Trauntvein
Times-News Correspondent
A Nephi woman, Leisa Ward, 38, and the mother of five children, will spend the next nine months in Juab County Jail for having sexual relations with at least eight teenage boys.
The sentence was for a full year with time off for the 79 days Ward has already spent in prison receiving a diagnostic evaluation.
Ward was sentenced Tuesday morning (May 21) in 4th District Court in Nephi to one year in Juab County Jail on 11 counts of unlawful sexual conduct with 16- and 17-year old males. Each of those charges were third-degree felonies.
Donald J. Eyre, 4th District Court Judge, said: “The recommendation from the diagnostic community is that you be sent to prison.”
“It is troubling to the court that they do not have sex offender treatment for women at the prison.”
Eyre sentenced Ward to five consecutive and six concurrent terms, meaning the possibility of 25 years in prison. Eyre, because of his concern that there was not proper treatment available at the prison, then suspended the prison sentence requiring jail time instead.
“There will be no good time off on the jail sentence,” said Eyre.
“Your actions distorted their (the victims) perception of reality, their perception of sexual conduct,” Eyre said. “It will affect them for the rest of their lives.”
Eyre sentenced Ward to serve 36 months probation and to pay $1,200 in fines plus a $250 security fee and to pay restitution to the victims in the form of costs for on-going counseling treatment which victims have already needed and which they may continue to require. She also has to complete sex offender treatment.
While on probation, she will not be allowed to have any unsupervised contact with anyone under 18-years old, except for her own children.
At the request of AnnMarie Howard, Deputy Juab County Attorney and prosecutor in the case, Ward will also not be permitted to use a cell phone during her three years of probation.
Howard said that the prosecution had hoped the diagnostic test would reveal something new but little more had been learned than was already known.
Ward prepared the teens for sexual relationships prior to those acts actually occurring.
“Leisa Ward took conscious and persistent steps in maintaining this conduct and these relationships,” said Howard. “She enticed them, encouraged them and she has yet to accept full responsibility for that.”
“She blames her loveless marriage, she blames the young men,” she said. “She seems to be surprised that she finds herself in these circumstances.”
“She created a culture or a society with these young men where she was the core of it—her and her sexual favors. I don’t believe we have seen the full impact of that yet.”
Belle Brough, supervisor of the prison diagnostic unit, addressed the court to explain the diagnostic report submitted to the court.
“Every report we have, we had a little bit different story about the involvement. We felt like she never took full responsibility.”
Other concerns were the number of victims and the grooming behavior.
“A sex offender will typically groom victims until they’re ready,” Brough said. “Flirtations, text messaging, sending pictures of her body; grooming these kids until a point that they felt comfortable enough to ask her for sexual intercourse.”
Brough said that women in the diagnostic program are assigned to groups. The women of the group at the prison that Ward was a member of thought that Ward was flirting with a male guard.
Another issue the diagnostic evaluation had questioned was the support of the family because, although Ward’s husband was standing by her, she had mentioned their loveless marriage as one of the reasons she had done as she had.
Two of the victim’s mothers tearfully addressed the court. One said that Ward had stolen her son’s innocence and had taught him perversions, things that will be difficult to overcome.
“My son is going to hurt in the long run, be out searching for things that she taught him, things that are not even valid in a marriage,” she said.
“What happens if we do catch her texting our kids again?” asked the second mother. Eyre told the mother such action would mean a violation of probation, and Ward would go to prison.
The mothers reported that Ward had come to their homes in the middle of the night and had honked the car horn for their sons to come out of the house. This had been done while the mothers were sleeping.
“She is that gutsy,” said the second mother.
The sex may have been consensual, but Ward was more than 20 years older than the boys.
Ward sobbed as she listened to her husband, Bruce Ward, plead for probation from the judge.
“She needs help, and we can help her,” he said. “I think we have a better opportunity to help her in a family environment.”
He said the children in the family wanted their mother home and told of the oldest son who is a good kid largely because of his mother. He wanted his kids to grow up in a two-parent family.
“I understand what she has done probably better than anyone here,” he said. “My kids and I have suffered just like a lot of other people have. But I believe there’s a chance for us. Even if it’s a little chance, it’s worth the risk.”
He said he knows he will be criticized for choosing to stay with his wife, but he said he thought it was the right thing to do.
“It’s been the most difficult time that me and my kids have ever gone through,” he said. “They ask me questions, and I can’t answer them. They want to know how and why and I just can’t answer them. I think we can answer all those questions together if you’ll allow it.”
Ward was arrested in November after Nephi police officers began investigating community rumors that turned out to be true.
The abuse began in April 2007 with one victim. During the review at the Utah State Prison, Ward revealed three more victims. Additional charges were not filed due to the plea agreement.
Ward pleaded guilty in January and was set to be sentenced in late February. However, the court sent her to the prison’s diagnostic unit.
“There are eight victims,” Howard said. “It particularly went on through the months of August through November of 2007.”
“It’s been particularly difficult for parents of the victims. I think the community at large is well aware of who the victims are, and I’m hopeful this will put an end to some of that, so the victims can continue to progress and move forward from this,” Howard said.
“The prison sentence is hanging over her head, and if she continues not to accept responsibility and to not follow through with her treatment, then she can expect that consequence,” she said.
Defense attorney Mike Esplin said that Ward has taken full responsibility for all the offenses to which she has entered pleas of guilty. He said Ward didn’t take responsibility for those that were dismissed or ones she “was not consentual to.”
He said Ward had sought out counseling on her own in an attempt to deal with her “attention-seeking behavior” and try to understand her own actions, Esplin said.
He said she had family support from her extended family which also included her in-law family.
“She has always taken responsibility for it (her actions) but she has not understood why,” said Esplin.
Still crying, Ward followed her husband to the stand and read from a written statement. “I’d like to take this opportunity to apologize to the young men and all the families,” she said, in part.
“I have brought damage and shame on so many people. I would like to find some way to make right the wrongs I’ve done, and the sorrow and pain I’ve caused upon these boys and their families.”
She also said she was “eager” to step back into her roll as a mother.
Howard had advice for parents. She said: “Make sure you are talking to your teenagers, make sure you know where they are and what they are doing, and that you go over the rules with them, the rules you have in your home about personal behavior and about trusting adults.”
