Post Falls man sentenced for lewd conduct

Ronald V. Herrera turned stammering in the Coeur d’Alene courtroom Tuesday to apologize to his wife.

Wearing orange prison jumpers and thick glasses, his head shaved, Herrera, through tears, asked his wife to forgive him. He loved her, he said, and he took responsibility for the actions that have irreparably damaged his family.

The lengthy plea for reconciliation however did not prevent First District Judge John Mitchell from sentencing Herrera, 52, of Post Falls to 25 years in prison on two counts of lewd conduct with a minor.

Mitchell followed the recommendation of deputy prosecutor Laura McClinton, who argued Herrera’s psychosexual evaluation and presentencing reports were faulty, because they painted the defendant as someone who was only moderately likely to reoffend.

Herrera had for 10 years molested a girl starting when she was a 7-year-old, according to court records. Two other victims in Washington had stepped forward prompting authorities in Spokane to file additional charges, McClinton said.

“He has an attraction for young girls, and he carries out that attraction by molesting them,” she said.

Jay Logsdon of the public defender’s office asked the judge to consider Herrera’s humanity, and the reports that focused on a sentence — five years with a possibility for a retained jurisdiction — heavy on rehabilitation.

“He’s very human, he’s just a person, he is well respected by other inmates,” Logsdon said. “There is probably a low likelihood that anything like this can happen ever again.”

Mitchell chose instead a 10-year fixed prison term for Herrera with a 15-year indeterminate term, and credited the defendant for 180 days he has served in the Kootenai County jail since his March arrest on the two sexual battery felonies.

Mitchell paused after delivering the sentence.

He needed to explain why he chose to dish out prison time over rehabilitation, the judge said.

“I’m not a punishment-oriented judge,” Mitchell said. “And there’s a big punishment factor here.”

In listening to Herrera’s statements, he was struck that he did not mention the victims.

“I don’t know how on earth you can come into this sentencing and not know the impact you have on the victim, on the rest of her life, and not comment on that.” Mitchell said.

“It’s beyond me, and it troubles me.

“I don’t know there’s hope of any rehabilitation,” he said. “If I had hope, I would have used that on a retained jurisdiction ... I can’t get there ... I don’t see any hope for that.”

Many of the criminals that come before him, he said, have suffered similar experiences as Herrera’s victims. It crumbles their lives. They turn to drugs and eventually a criminal lifestyle, he said.

“I hope I don’t see your victim here because of what you did, but I won’t be surprised,” he said. “What you did to that person is so horrible that I am very comfortable with the sentence.”