This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2014, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
A 65-year-old American Fork man was sentenced to jail Tuesday for having sex with his neighbor's dog.
Melvin Parley Pace had pleaded guilty in 4th District Court to three counts each of third-degree felony lewdness with a prior offense, class B misdemeanor bestiality and class B misdemeanor criminal trespass.
Judge Derek Pullan ordered Pace to spend 180 days in the Utah County jail, as part of a 36-month probation. Also as part of his probation, Pace was prohibited from any contact with "middle- to large-sized mammals," or to have unsupervised contact with children, according to prosecutors.
Because this is the second time Pace has been convicted of lewdness charges for having sex with his neighbor's Kangal, a large Turkish dog breed, he is now required to register as a sex offender and must attend treatment.
In the first case, the dog's owners aimed a camera at the dog's run after the gate was left open in December 2013. The footage showed Pace enter the dog run and have sex with the dog, according to American Fork police Lt. Sam Liddiard.
In that case, Pace was charged with two counts each of bestiality, lewdness and criminal trespass, all class B misdemeanors. Pace pleaded guilty in February to two counts of lewdness and the other counts were dismissed. He received a suspended jail sentence and was placed on probation for 12 months.
This spring, the dog's run was again left open, so the owners reactivated the camera, according to charging documents.
The new footage showed Pace — who was still on probation in the first case — having sex with the dog on at least seven different occasions between May 20 and June 28, the charges add.
The dog run is in full view and hearing of two city streets, a business and neighboring homes, according to charges.
In exchange for his pleas in the current case, eight similar charges were dropped as part of a plea deal.
Twitter: @jm_miller