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PROVO, Utah (AP) — A Provo woman who police say was raped, bludgeoned and left for dead after an inmate walked away from a work release program says the jail was irresponsible.
Attorneys for the victim want the Utah Supreme Court to allow her to sue the county jail for releasing Shawn Michael Leonard to work. They say there have been previous work release escapes, and the county should have done a better job screening participants.
The county says nothing indicated Leonard was capable of attacking the then-19-year-old woman, and a lawsuit could harm programs that teach other inmates important work skills.
Leonard is serving a prison sentence of life without parole in the 2010 attack. The Utah Supreme Court is weighing whether the victim's civil lawsuit should proceed after hearing arguments in the case Thursday.
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