Man strikes plea deal in sex-crimes case

A man whose videotaped arrest on Internet sex-crimes charges sparked controversy has struck a plea deal with prosecutors.

During an appearance in Salt Lake City's 3rd District Court on Monday, Adam B. Rich, 26, pleaded guilty to a pair of class A misdemeanor charges of enticing a minor over the Internet. In exchange, prosecutors dismissed a third-degree felony charge of dealing in materials harmful to a minor.

"We believed it was more important to have him on the sex offender registry than to convict him of a felony," assistant Utah attorney general Peter "Rocky" Rognlie said Monday.

Rich was arrested by the Utah Attorney General's Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force in August, accused of soliciting what he thought was an underage girl online. His arrest was videotaped by a staffer and posted on Attorney General Mark Shurtleff's Web site, attorneygeneral.utah.gov, to help promote the redesigned site.

The video shows Rich, in handcuffs, being led into a building. Interviews with the ICAC agents who made the arrest followed.

"It's crazy that we have guys like this that would do this type of thing," Richfield police officer Spencer Redden said in the video.

The video was criticized by Rich's attorney and the American Civil Liberties Union, who said the video seemed to convict Rich before he ever made it to court. The ACLU accused Shurtleff of political grandstanding.

The Utah Attorney General's Office said it will continue to post videos online as it deems appropriate. In recent weeks, Shurtleff's Web site has included the attorney general firing guns at a less-than-bulletproof vest and a news conference on a music industry lawsuit settlement.

---

E-mail: bwinslow@desnews.com