A Sierra Vista man sits in the Cochise County jail awaiting transfer to the Arizona Department of Corrections (ADC) where he will serve five years as part of a plea deal in a child molestation case.
Matthew James Thomas must also register as a sex offender for the rest of his life once released from prison even though he insisted his actions were not for sexual gratification.
Thomas, 45, was indicted by a county grand jury in November 2021 on seven felonies related to sexual misconduct offenses involving a minor from 2016 through 2021. He came under investigation after a young girl related to Thomas reported the abuse to a school employee who then notified the Cochise County Sheriff’s Office (CCSO).
CCSO Det. Alexander Dolhyj conducted a post-Miranda interview with Thomas on Nov. 9, 2021, one week after the girl came forward.
“During this interview Matthew immediately reported that he has been inappropriately touching (the girl) for the last 5 years to include touching of the child’s buttocks, breast, and vagina,” Dolhyi wrote in a probable cause statement. “Matthew insisted that these acts of Sexual abuse / molestation were not for sexual gratification but more so out of curiosity and that he enjoyed the rush / excitement of being doing something wrong without being caught.”
Dolhyi placed Thomas under arrest at the end of the interview. The detective’s statement also noted Thomas continually mentioned during the interview that “he feels remorseful for what he had done” and wished to reconcile his wrongdoing with the justice system “as fast as possible” for the victim.
In June, Thomas pleaded guilty as part of a negotiated plea agreement to one felony of attempted child molestation for “intentionally or knowingly attempted to engage in sexual contact” with a child under fifteen years of age between 2016 and 2021.
The offense, a Class 3 felony, carried a prison sentencing range of 5 to 15 years although the plea deal allowed Thomas’ defense attorney, Joshua Hamilton, to argue in favor of probation instead of incarceration.
Judge Laura Cardinal heard arguments from Hamilton as well as Deputy County Attorney Michael Powell on Sept. 1. She agreed with the adult probation department that probation was not appropriate in Thomas’ case.
Thomas was given one week to surrender himself into the county jail, which he did on Sept. 8. He will be eligible for release after serving 85 percent of his sentence, although he will remain under ADC supervision until the end of the five years.
Powell handled the Thomas prosecution from grand jury presentation to sentencing. He called the case “incredibly tragic” particularly as Thomas molested the girl in part because he got a thrill out of seeing if he could get away with it.
“As Judge Cardinal noted, the Defendant lived an exemplary life in many respects. Because the Defendant had no prior criminal history and made a full confession, the State offered a plea that gave the judge the option of prison or lifetime probation,” Powell told Arizona Daily Independent.
But Thomas’ success in some areas of his life “hid a darker truth,” says Powell, who believes the judge came to the proper conclusion that Thomas’ conduct did not warrant probation.
“She correctly determined that both the victim and the Defendant needed to see that there was a consequence for his actions,” he said.
