Former Helper City Council member sentenced to 15 years in prison for sexual assault

CARBON COUNTY, Utah (ABC4) — A former Helper, UT city council member has been sentenced to 15 years in prison after he pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting a woman in her home in 2022. This comes after he pleaded guilty in another sexual assault case in 2019.

Darren Cloward, 56, pleaded guilty to three counts of forcible sexual abuse, charges that were amended to be third-degree felonies (rather than second-degree) as part of a plea deal.

Cloward previously pleaded guilty to burglary and forcible sexual abuse for an incident that occurred while he was a city council member in 2019, for which he paid a $750 fine and did not serve prison time. Instead, he was placed on 48 months of probation.

According to the probable cause statement, on February 19, 2022, Cloward was at the victim’s home as part of a social gathering. He approached her while she was in the kitchen and told her that he wanted to grab her breasts.

He reportedly said, “I was told I had to ask before I can grab them,” and then groped her chest.

Later in the evening, he was in the living room alone with the victim. He approached her and hugged her, and while hugging her, he sexually assaulted her. The victim’s partner then entered the room, and Cloward released her.

Shortly afterwards, he was alone with the victim again and said, “Be my second wife.” He groped her again, and her partner saw the assault and removed Cloward from their home.

Following a statement from the victim in court, Cloward was sentenced to three terms of five years in prison to be served consecutively, for a total of 15 years in the Utah State Prison. The victim was also granted a continuous protective order against Cloward.

Following sentencing, he was taken into custody by the Carbon County Sheriff and transported to the prison.

After his arrest and during the trial, Cloward was released on bail. The victim petitioned the court for and was granted a civil stalking injunction against Cloward in August 2023.

A restitution hearing for Cloward is scheduled for March 18, 2026, where he will be ordered to provide some amount of financial compensation to the victim. The amount will be determined at the hearing.

2019 case against Cloward

In 2022, Cloward was sentenced after he pleaded guilty to entering a neighbor’s home without permission and sexually assaulting her in 2019, while he was a Helper City Council member.

According to the probable cause statement, on June 10, 2019, Cloward went over to his neighbor’s house while his daughter was there playing with the neighbor’s son. He came in through the back door uninvited and sat down on the couch next to the neighbor. Reportedly, he made suggestive comments about her and the swimsuit she was wearing.

She stated that he had been drinking and had an alcoholic beverage in his hand.

Later that night, Cloward entered the home uninvited again and entered the victim’s bedroom. He touched her chest over the sheets while she was in bed.

Cloward told police that he entered the home a second time to get his daughter. The responding officer reported that he smelled of alcohol while they were speaking. Cloward’s daughter told police that she saw him go downstairs (where the bedroom was) after he came into the house. The victim’s son told Cloward that the victim was downstairs changing.

Cloward pleaded guilty to one count of burglary and one count of forcible sexual abuse. Both charges are typically second-degree felonies, but they were amended to third-degree felonies as part of a plea deal. He was sentenced to two terms of five years in prison, but both prison terms were suspended, meaning that he did not have to serve any time in prison.

The victim in this case also applied for and was granted a civil stalking injunction against Cloward.

Instead, he paid a $750 fine and was placed on probation for four years. He also was ordered to pay $2,055.05 in restitution to the victim.