1988 American Fork rape case may be coming to an end

PROVO — After more than 20 years, the rape case against Carl McClellan may finally be closing.

McClellan, now 45, was convicted in 1988 and sentenced to five years to life for raping an American Fork woman while he was selling cleaning supplies door-to-door. He served five years in prison and has been in and out of custody since then for violating his parole seven times, according to Department of Corrections records.

But in July, the Utah Supreme Court ordered a new trial, citing the "egregious mismanagement" of McClellan's case and the fact that his original defense attorney took a job with the Utah County Attorney's Office days before the trial started. The court ruled that the local prosecutors should have been disqualified due to conflict of interest.

Earlier this week, 4th District Judge Samuel McVey granted a motion filed by McClellan's attorney, Tom Means, to disqualify the office. McVey said he would hold off on signing such an order to give McClellan time to consider a plea deal offered by prosecutors.

Both Means and prosecutor Sherry Ragan said that even if McClellan is found guilty again, he likely would do no more time for the crime. Ragan said she believes McClellan has moved to Hawaii since his most recent release from prison in March 2009.

McClellan has stayed actively involved in his case, making several requests to have new counsel appointed. In one letter to the court while incarcerated in 2007, he was apparently so despondent about his case that he requested to die by lethal injection, court records state.

— Paul Koepp