1/13/2009 4:33:00 PM Former deputy Dwyer gets 7.5 years in prison
Justin Dwyer
By T.M. Shultz Contributing Reporter
Former Yavapai County Sheriff's deputy Justin Dwyer will spend the next 7.5 years in prison with no chance of parole.
Yavapai County Superior Court Judge Thomas Lindberg sentenced Dwyer Monday to half the maximum amount of time he could have spent in prison, based on a plea agreement worked out with the state. Under that agreement, Dwyer could have spent a maximum of 15 years in prison to a minimum of five years.
Dwyer pled guilty on Sept. 5 to three counts of transferring drugs to minors and one count of contributing to the delinquency of a minor. One of the minors involved in drug and sex parties at Dwyer's house in 2007 was his own teenage son.
Lindberg gave Dwyer 7.5 years for each of the three felony counts of transferring drugs to minors and 180 days for the misdemeanor charge of contributing to the delinquency of a minor. But because the sentences are to run concurrently, which means at the same time, Dwyer will only serve 7.5 years.
In addition, Lindberg sentenced Dwyer to pay a $2,000 fine for each of the three felony counts.
Joe Butner, the Yavapai County attorney who prosecuted the case on behalf of the state, said after the sentencing that he was "somewhat" disappointed and had hoped Dwyer's sentence would be "significantly longer."
Prior to sentencing, Butner told the judge that Dwyer "opted to no longer be bound by the law. These crimes are crimes ... of extreme arrogance."
But Dwyer's attorney, John Sears, told the judge that Dwyer was one of the most remorseful defendants Sears had ever represented.
"He began to cooperate in this case the second he was confronted," Sears said.
He asked Lindberg to "temper justice with mercy" and allow Dwyer to reunite with his family as soon as possible.
Sears promised that Dwyer would put his time behind bars to good use.
"We've talked about him possibly writing a book," Sears said.
Dwyer also pleaded for mercy. "I put in a lot of good years at the Sheriff's Office, and I have let them down," he acknowledged, his voice nearly breaking with tears.
"I've given them a black eye - something that they don't need. I just had a period of time where I just didn't know what I was doing."
Judge Lindberg said he believed Dwyer was committed to changing his life.
But, he added, "It is a sad day inevitably when ... a police officer appears before any judge in the country."
"It's a violation of the public trust," Lindberg continued. "People feel a particular sense of betrayal."
Lindberg took the time to read in its entirety the YCSO mission statement, which talks about ethics and model behavior.
"That's the spirit of what you violated," Lindberg said.
However, Lindberg said he also had to take into account the fact that Dwyer had no prior felonies, that he seems sincerely remorseful and that he cooperated with authorities. He said he also took Dwyer's prior Marine Corps service into account as a mitigating factor.
In addition, Lindberg said he took into account the dangerousness of Dwyer's situation as a law enforcement officer in prison when he decided to run Dwyer's sentences concurrently instead of one consecutively.
