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CEDAR CITY — A Cedar City man who pleaded guilty to five felonies in connection with an incident during which he was shot and wounded by police on Valentine's Day last year was sentenced to prison on Tuesday.
Larry Joseph Lee Tessier, 37, was ordered to serve two terms of 1-15 years in the Utah State Prison for the second-degree felonies of attempted aggravated burglary and criminal mischief. He also was sentenced to three terms of 0-5 years for three third-degree felonies, namely two counts of aggravated assault and one count of failure to stop at command of police.
Additionally, 5th District Judge Ann Marie McIff Allen ordered that each of the terms be served consecutively, meaning Tessier will serve no less than two years and possibly as long as 45 years, with the exact length of the total sentence to be ultimately determined by the Utah Board of Pardons.
As previously reported in Cedar City News, Tessier led police on a vehicle pursuit the evening of Feb. 14, 2021, following a 911 call reporting an aggravated assault. The ensuing chase ended in a rural area near 2400 West and 400 North with four officers opening fire as Tessier drove his vehicle toward them. Initially hospitalized with multiple gunshot wounds, Tessier was later booked into jail after he recovered and was released from the hospital.
Meanwhile, the officers' use of deadly force was found to be justified by an independent agency's investigation.
Although he had initially entered not guilty pleas on each of the five counts, Tessier eventually pleaded guilty to the charges on Oct. 19.
