A Jackson, Wyoming, man has been sentenced to between three and five years in prison after pleading guilty to attacking another man who reportedly refused his sexual advances.
Shane Scott Clary, 39, was not a good candidate for probation, Teton County District Court Judge Melissa Owens said in a sentencing order filed Wednesday after Clary’s Aug. 29 sentencing hearing. She sentenced him to between three and five years in prison, with credit for the 30 days he spent in jail during his prosecution. She also ordered him to pay $400 for the public defender’s services and various smaller costs and fees.
Clary pleaded guilty in June to one count of aggravated assault after signing a plea agreement in which Teton County Deputy Attorney Mackenzie Cole agreed to limit her sentencing argument to between four and six years in prison, while Clary was free to argue for any sentence he wanted. The charge, aggravated assault, is punishable by up to 10 years in prison and $10,000 in fines when not limited by a plea agreement.
The conviction followed a police report that described an Uber driver finding Clary’s victim, who was then 36, lying against the curb at West Snow King Avenue in below-freezing weather the morning of Dec. 23, 2023.
Bar Hopping
The two men had been out drinking at various Jackson bars the night before as friends or acquaintances, and Clary convinced the other man to drink and listen to music in an upstairs office at Clary’s workplace, according to the evidentiary affidavit filed in the case.
Eventually, Clary made a sexual advance toward the other man by rubbing his groin, says the document.
“I’m not into that,” said the man.
“Come on, let me,” answered Clary, according to the affidavit.
The man kept refusing Clary’s advances. He next remembered waking up outside in the road with someone hitting and kicking him, dragging him across the road, leaving him against the curb and walking away, says the affidavit.
The Video
Video of the workplace’s lower storage area shows the victim entering the camera frame rapidly as if trying to escape someone, the affidavit says. The victim tries to hide between pallets, then collapses on the floor.
Clary enters the frame and starts kicking the victim’s body and head as he lay defenseless on the warehouse floor in the fetal position, the document relates from the video. It says Clary punched and hit the victim with his fists and tried to lift the man by his hair.
“Clary is also smoking a cigarette for part of the assault,” the affidavit continues. “Clary appears very deliberate in his assault of (the victim).”
When Clary finally dragged the victim to the curb, an Uber driver who happened to be driving past saw it and called police.
Jackson police officers responded and found the victim lying against the curb at West Snow King Avenue in below-freezing weather.
The victim wasn’t sure how he ended up outside in the road, and responders took him to the emergency room. He was later discharged with contusions and a metatarsal (foot) fracture, the affidavit says.
Letters In Support
At least two women filed letters in support of Clary ahead of his sentencing.
From Missouri, the mother of Clary’s child wrote that she has seen positive changes in behavior since he’d started counseling, and she urged the judge not to give him prison time.
“His dedication to maintaining contact with our child and providing financial support has been nothing short of remarkable,” wrote the woman. “These actions have not only helped us here in Missouri, but have also demonstrated a level of responsibility and care that I had not seen before.”
A woman who worked at a Jackson ski resort with Clary for six months during his prosecution told Judge Owens that he has shown dedication, empathy, a positive attitude, team mentality and a willingness to take on projects. She called him “irreplaceable” at the resort.
Clair McFarland can be reached at clair@cowboystatedaily.com.
