Even with a pre-sentence report and the county attorneys both strongly recommending prison time, 3rd District Court Judge Stephen Henriod opted to give a Magna man accused of stealing a car in Stansbury Park and leading police on a high-speed chase across Tooele County, another chance during sentencing proceedings Tuesday, and instead sentenced the 21-year-old to one year in the Tooele County Jail.

Jason Val Stout was arrested July 22 near Vernon after stealing a 1993 Nissan Sentra from Stansbury Park and helping two juvenile accomplices make a getaway from another stolen vehicle that had blown a tire during a high-speed chase with Tooele County Sheriff’s deputies.

The initial chase began after a call came into dispatch reporting cars racing around Stansbury Park during the night. Officers began pursuing a small pickup and a 1993 Honda Civic south on SR-36 until the pickup pulled over.

Officers later learned the driver of the pickup was chasing a car he believed to be involved in the theft of his Nissan Sentra. The man, who was in town from California visiting his brother, heard his vehicle roar to life during the night and ran to the driveway to find it gone.

While officers obtained information from the California man, other officers continued the pursuit of the Civic, which was stolen from Layton. The chase reached speeds of over 100 mph before the Civic got a flat tire a couple miles north of the Faust Road junction. As an officer approached the vehicle, the Sentra — driven by Stout — came speeding up the road and parked alongside the Civic long enough for the two juveniles to exit the Civic and get into the Sentra.

Police were later able to spike the road ahead of the Sentra near Vernon. As the vehicle swerved to miss the spikes, it went off the roadway. The three occupants then fled from the vehicle on foot.

Stout was later found hiding in an outbuilding on a Vernon property. The female juvenile was found lying in a field, and the male juvenile was taken into custody after a rancher reported a teen requesting to use his phone.

Stout was booked into the Tooele County Jail on charges of second-degree felony theft by receiving stolen property, third-degree felony failure to stop at the command of police, third-degree felony aggravated assault and failure to stop at the command of police, reckless driving and speeding — all misdemeanors. As part of a plea deal with the prosecution, however, Stout plead guilty in early September to theft by receiving stolen property and failure to stop at the command of police — both third-degree felonies. All other charges were dismissed.

The juvenile cases are being handled in juvenile court.

Defense attorney Jon Williams argued against sending Stout to prison based on his young age and the fact that this is Stout’s first felony conviction as an adult. Stout does have an extensive juvenile criminal history, however.

“If the court sends him to prison today, he is not going to do well. He will fall into a crowd that will affect the rest of his life,” Williams said. “Although his actions justify a huge punishment, there is an alternative.”

Tooele County Deputy Attorney Gary Searle said court records show that not too long ago, Stout was in front of another court judge apologizing for evading police.

“He said if he could take back his actions he would, and now here he is again,” Searle said, asking Henriod to follow the recommendations made in the pre-sentence report. “I don’t know what his Bonnie-and-Clyde actions deserve more than prison.”

Henriod then sentenced Stout to zero to five years in prison on both charges, but suspended the prison time in lieu of one year in the Tooele County Jail. Following completion of the jail time, Stout will be required to a pay $1,000 fine, $3,000 of restitution, and he will be on probation for a period of 36 months.

Jamie Belnap: jamieb@tooeletranscript.com