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SALT LAKE CITY — A popular Bountiful gynecologist "conspired with the devil" when he recorded video of a girl as he removed her clothing and shared the video with another man, the girl's mother said Friday.
"You deserve to be forgotten," the woman told Nathan Clark Ward, 56, moments before a federal judge sentenced him to roughly 22 years in prison.
Ward still faces separate felony child sexual abuse charges in the state court system.
"You hid behind a career in which you took an oath to protect others," she continued, her voice thick with emotion, calling him a "filthy, disgusting man who created a false world to cover up your deviancy."
The girl's mother said he should be punished "to the highest level" because of the position of trust he held.
U.S. District Judge Dee Benson agreed.
"This is one of the few cases where I’ve seriously considered a life sentence," he told Ward. "I think you deserve one."
Benson said he chose the strongest sentence that federal guidelines allow.
Shackled and wearing a Davis County Jail jumpsuit, Ward apologized to those he hurt.
"I know what I did was horribly wrong and I know that I have caused significant pain, heartache and damage to them, and also indirectly to other individuals in my family," he said. The doctor said he takes full responsibility for his actions.
"I don't believe that," Benson responded. "All you’ve agreed with is that you produced some child pornography, which is, I imagine, what you'll tell your cellmates. I don't know what lie you’ll tell. You might have to, to survive in prison."
Benson said Ward's crime "is beyond my ability to comprehend," but he hopes the girl can recover and live a happy, healthy life. Court documents indicate the girl was 12 years old at the time.
Ward's mother, Barbara Ward, told the judge she knew her son must serve time in prison, but she had seen a change in him over a period of months and believed he could improve.
"I would just ask that justice be combined with mercy," she said.
Ward's attorney, Ed Brass, sought a 15-year sentence, saying that his client had helped many people over the course of his career.
Related story:
Bountiful gynecologist admits to streaming child porn
A Bountiful gynecologist accused in state court of sexually abusing children pleaded guilty to a federal child pornography charge Tuesday."I would hope the good he's done in his life balances out the evil," Brass said.
The judge ordered Ward to 262 months in federal prison in Colorado, followed by supervised release for the rest of his life. Benson said he would like Ward's 401K plan to possibly cover the cost of the girl's college tuition, fees, books and housing, and gave attorneys 30 days to seek such restitution.
The girl's mother said she is grateful police didn't dismiss the case out of hand because Ward was a respected doctor and family man. He had been in practice for 25 years, specializing in obstetrics and gynecology, and was suspended from Lakeview Hospital after his arrest.
Deputy Davis County attorney Nathan Lyon called the case "exceptionally sad."
"I happen to have quite a few neighbors who indicated he was their physician and they frankly adored him," Lyon said. "On other hand, we have an individual who has absolutely decimated lives."
About three dozen people attended the hearing, including the girl, who continues to recover from the ordeal, according to her mother. One of Ward's family members wept as she watched the proceeding.
KSL typically does not identify victims of sexual crimes. The news organization is withholding the mother's name to avoid identifying the teen.
In March, Ward admitted that he streamed video on his cellphone to Robert Edwin Francis, in which he lifted up the shirt of a minor and pulled down her pants between June 2013 and August 2015.
Ward pleaded guilty to production of child pornography in a plea bargain with prosecutors, who agreed to drop two other charges of possession and distribution of child pornography.
Francis, of Lehi, admitted in November that he requested and received a live video chat depicting a man sexually abusing a child. He was sentenced to 12 years in federal prison.
Ward also faces 11 felony charges in 2nd District Court, including sodomy on a child, aggravated sex abuse of a child and forcible sodomy, forcible sex abuse and sexual exploitation of a minor. He is scheduled to be arraigned in that case on Aug. 2.
