By Tracie Sullivan
A 5th District Court judge sentenced a 38-year-old man to a potential life sentence Monday, expressing hope that he is never granted release.
Judge Matthew Bell ordered Cedar City resident Zackry Izaac Ross to serve five years to life for aggravated burglary and three years to life for attempted murder. He ordered both counts to run consecutively, ensuring the defendant serves one full sentence before the next begins.
While Ross may be released as early as eight years, Bell said he hopes the Board of Pardons keeps him in prison for life.
Ross’s sentencing followed a February trial where a jury convicted him of brutally assaulting a female victim at a local laundromat.
According to court documents, officers had previously trespassed Ross from the premises. However, he later entered and strangled the victim with a rubber hose and his bare hands. The episode lasted for over two and a half minutes before police intervened and pulled him off her.
Despite the jury’s conviction, Ross persisted in denying the charges. In a pre-sentence statement provided to the courts, the defendant tried to portray himself as a victim, alleging he was the one attacked, despite video footage of the incident.
“I went into (the) laundromat in a snow blizzard to get warm and I was homeless. Argued with the lady, she scratched and hit me, I defended from it, she lied about it, said I put a hose around her neck and tried to kill her, I never did,” Ross wrote.
“But she was believed and I was not. She is an immigrant making false claims for citizenship, but I get charged and found guilty. Yay America, I’m filing an appeal.”
Iron County Attorney Chad Dotson passionately argued for Ross to serve consecutive sentences, citing his extensive criminal history, marked by violence and repeated brushes with the law. Dotson underscored the necessity of removing Ross from society to prevent further harm.
“He showed a complete disregard for the law and for human life and only stopped when he was forcibly removed from the victim by law enforcement,” Dotson said.
“…One of the goals of the criminal justice system is to incapacitate recidivist criminals. Mr. Ross has reached that point. Rehabilitation efforts are not working, and he needs to be removed from society for as long as the law allows.”
Echoing the prosecutor’s sentiments, Bell denounced Ross’s actions as reprehensible, stating that he entered the laundromat with the intent to snuff out the victim’s life. Bell described the attack as “cowardly, unrelenting and merciless,” leaving an indelible mark on the victim and the community.