Two animal-rights activists were sent to jail Monday for their part in the arson of a West Jordan McDonald's restaurant under construction.
The fast-food restaurant was burned last year as a protest to the selling of meat.The two men were both sentenced to prison, then given suspended terms and ordered to spend a year in the Salt Lake County Jail.
Jason Troff, 19, South Jordan, and Ryan Durfee, 20, Central City, were half of a four-member group that splashed gasoline around a McDonald's restaurant nearing completion last Aug. 16, then ignited it by setting off M-80 firecrackers. The restaurant burned to the ground, the loss estimated at $238,000.
Investigators found "One billion served, one billion killed" scrawled on one of the restaurant walls.
Durfee and Mark Klein, 19, Heber City, and a 17-year-old juvenile were charged with arson and possession of an explosive device, both second-degree felonies. Troff was charged with use of an explosive device, a first-degree felony, and arson and possession of an explosive device, both second-degree felonies.
Durfee pleaded guilty to criminal mischief, a second-degree felony, and Troff pleaded guilty to arson, also a second-degree felony. Both faced up to 15 years in prison.
Third District Judge Glenn Iwasaki suspended Durfee's prison term and ordered him to spend a year in the county jail and do 200 hours of community service. Durfee apologized for the incident and said he's distanced himself from animal-rights activists.
Troff served 90 days at the state prison's diagnostic center after 3rd District Judge Tyrone Medley couldn't initially decide what to do with him. The recommendation from the diagnostic center staff was also ambivalent, with a bare majority arguing for prison but a vocal minority saying Troff is a good candidate for probation.
Defense attorney David Maddox said Troff is being singled out by prosecutors because he acted on behalf of the animal- rights movement that has been responsible for some flagrant crimes along the Wasatch Front that police and prosecutors are unable to solve.
Both Troff and Durfee are vegans, strict vegetarians who eschew all meat and dairy products. But vegans are a belief, not a gang, Maddox told the judge, and being a vegan doesn't automatically tie a person to violent animal-rights groups.
"This was a very politically visible crime, and the state wants to make the most of it, to send a message to others to deter them," Maddox said. "That's not the proper response."
Troff still holds onto his beliefs, Maddox said, but now sees they should be promoted in a nonviolent, non-coercive way.
Maddox also argued that Troff was suffering from depression a year ago because of personal and family problems. His mother had just been diagnosed with terminal cancer and has since died, he said.
Prosecutor Ernie Jones urged Medley to follow the recommendation of Troff's pre-sentence report and send him to prison.
"This was an extremely serious crime," Jones said, which put firefighters and adjoining businesses in danger, besides causing $238,000 in damage to the restaurant.
"If Mr. Troff and his friends have decided it's all right to destroy a business in the middle of the night, they have to pay the price," Jones said, noting there are other cases pending involving animal-rights activists and urging the judge to send them a message.
"This is one of those cases where I'm very glad I referred the defendant to diagnostic," Medley said, calling it "one of those difficult cases. I'm not the only one who has struggled with what to do. This is a tough decision."
Medley told Troff he "crossed the line" and he hopes to "send a message to the community that the court will not tolerate this kind of activity."
But he also noted Troff was cooperative in his 87 days at the diagnostic center and appears amenable to counseling.
After suspending the prison sentence, Medley ordered Troff to spend a year in the county jail, giving him no credit for the three months he's already been in custody.
He ordered him to stay away from vegan groups and Straight Edge, a gang espousing an anti-drug and anti-pornography stance often associated with animal-rights activities.
Medley did not levy a fine but ordered Troff to pay $238,000 in restitution, which he noted is a heavy burden but one that will be shouldered by all four defendants.
Klein, who pleaded guilty to second-degree felony arson, is set for sentencing Sept. 26. The juvenile is on probation after a referral to juvenile court.