Jail time ordered for man possessing illegal materials found at landfill

CEDAR CITY — A Cedar City man who admitted to possessing an illegal child sex doll will spend additional time in jail before beginning probation.

Charging documents said a routine check for fire hazards at the Iron County landfill led to the discovery of a box with two sex dolls made to look like children, and although the shipping label was blacked out with a Sharpie, investigators were still able to read it.

They found that the man the label pointed to had additional dolls at home, according to the charges.

Shane Larson, 55, pleaded guilty to distributing or purchasing a child sex doll, a third-degree felony, and possession of a child sex doll, a class A misdemeanor, under a plea deal that dismissed five additional charges of each count.

He was sentenced on July 22 by 5th District Court Judge Matthew Bell to zero to five years in prison for the third-degree felony and one year in jail for the misdemeanor, but the judge suspended both sentences. Larson was instead ordered to serve 300 days in jail, where he has been held since his arrest in March, and then serve 36 months of probation.

During probation, Larson is ordered to develop an action plan, have a mental health evaluation in addition to the psychosexual evaluation he has already completed, have no unsupervised contact with any minors and have no contact with minors without advance approval from Adult Probation and Parole.

In 2023, a bill banning the possession, distribution or purchase of sex dolls made to look like children passed in both chambers of the Legislature without a single lawmaker opposing it before being signed by the governor.

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