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- Former UHP trooper Bronson Willas Wood pleaded guilty to two counts of sexual battery.
- He was ordered to serve two years on probation and pay a $1,000 fine; his jail sentences were suspended.
- Wood's charges were reduced from felonies as part of a plea deal.
RICHFIELD — A former Utah Highway Patrol trooper has been sentenced to two years of probation after admitting to sexual battery involving a 19-year-old woman while off duty.
Bronson Willas Wood, 47, pleaded guilty to two reduced counts of sexual battery and two counts of knowingly selling or offering alcohol to a minor, class A misdemeanors, on April 7. The two sexual battery counts were reduced from forcible sexual abuse, a second-degree felony, as part of a plea deal.
He was sentenced in the same hearing by 6th District Judge Alex Goble to a year in jail for each charge, but the jail terms were suspended and he was instead ordered to serve two years of probation and pay a fine of $1,000.
The judge also ordered him to provide a DNA sample, complete a substance abuse assessment and take courses on thinking errors and sexual behaviors. Wood will be on an ankle monitor for the first three months of his probation.
A 19-year-old woman and a friend were at Wood's home drinking wine on March 18, 2023, and Wood encouraged them to "take shots" of liquor with him, according to charging documents.
Later, the woman was trying to sleep when Wood put his hand on her hip and asked her to make out with him. He inappropriately touched the woman, despite her telling him she wanted him to stop and go upstairs "over and over," the charges state. After Wood eventually left, the woman left out a basement door and asked a friend to pick her up.
Wood told the woman he had been in love with her since she was 17, according to a police booking affidavit. The woman said she waited a year before reporting the incident because he was an officer, and she did not think anyone would believe her.
Wood apologized for his actions at the hearing. He was placed on administrative leave from UHP following his arrest. UHP confirmed Monday that he is no longer a trooper.
Deputy Utah County attorney David Sturgill said the victim was in the courtroom and agreed with the recommendation that Wood not serve any jail time.
