Cleo Juan gets 30 years

Staff and wire report

GALLUP — Cleo Juan has been sentenced to 30 years in prison for the death of an 18-month-old foster child who was in her care.

Juan was sentenced Monday by state District Judge Grant Foutz. District Attorney Karl Gillson says Juan was sentenced under a new state law mandating the 30-year sentence.

Foutz denied a motion April 15 by Juan's defense attorneys asking for a new trial on the grounds Foutz made a mistake when he refused to let the jury consider a lesser charge that would have allowed the jury to find her guilty of child abuse not leading to death.

Instead, the jury convicted her of child abuse leading to death, which requires a mandatory sentence of 30 years before she can be considered for parole instead of the six years for the other charge.

“We are pleased with he decision,” said Bernadine Martin, one of the prosecutors in the case. “Justice has been served.”

Mark Fine, Juan’s attorney, said he wasn't pleased but he also wasn’t shocked at losing, admitting that it would have been a long shot for Foutz to grant the motion since he denied it during the trial.

He said he’s was waiting for the sentencing to see what Foutz would do. He said if Foutz gave her the life sentence, he would appeal.

The state law that Foutz based his decision on is only a couple of years old and this is the first case to be tried under it. The law requires a mandatory life sentence. Fine, in an earlier interview, said he planned to argue that the law is unfair and should be nullified.

He pointed out that testimony during the trial indicated Juan was an exceptional foster mother for the state’s Child, Youth and Family Department.

Now she will be given a life sentence for a one-time action during a time when she told the state agency she was having problems taking care of Colby and his siblings, wanting them to be removed from her care, he said.

As a result, Colby died and Fine said he will argue that the law in place does not take into account the severity of the charge. A person with only one act that leads to child abuse and a death is treated the same as someone who abuses a child over a period of months or years, finally killing the child.