SWEETWATER COUNTY — As per a plea agreement, Allen E. Meredith was sentenced to two to five years of incarceration, suspended for three years supervised probation Thursday morning for his involvement in conspiracy to commit theft against Cannon Oil and Gas while he was an employee there.

On Monday, in the middle of his jury trial, Meredith changed his plea to no contest and a plea agreement was decided on between the defense and prosecution. Third District Court Judge Suzannah Robinson accepted the plea agreement, in which Meredith pleaded no contest to a felony charge of conspiracy to commit theft, and one felony count of theft and one felony count of crimes against intellectual property were dismissed.

Meredith is also required to pay $9,620 in restitution, in addition to court fees, for a total amount of $9,945. He also has two days credit for time served.

Judge Robinson said she believes Meredith will be successful on probation, as he has no prior convictions. However, if he is not successful on probation, she said, “I will not hesitate to send you to prison.” Robinson said that her experience with cases in which an individual dies, who in this case is Cannon Oil and Gas owner Rob Cannon, people go through a character test. She said people, such as family members, must choose whether they will act in a way that honors the individual who passed or if they will choose a different path.

“Will you choose to do what that person would have wanted you to do, or will you choose to argue, will you choose to go down a path where you are interested in that person’s things, their money, their finances? And it’s a choice to make, it’s a test. And Mr. Meredith, you failed the test,” Robinson said. “You chosse finances, you chose the company, you did not choose what Mr. Cannon would have wanted you to do and that has resulted in this betrayal of Mr. Cannon and his legacy. And it’s tragic and it’s sad and it’s a character choice you chose.”

Robinson said in any case, she considers mitigating factors and aggravating factors when sentencing. On the mitigating side, she said he has no criminal history, no current drug or alcohol issues, and he has strong family support. She said Meredith had family in attendance each day of the trial, and his wife, son, and daughter all wrote letters in support, which Robinson read during a recess Thursday morning. Additionally, Robinson said he has his business, Mountain West Energy Services, with several employees who are relying on him financially.

On the aggravating side, she said he took advantage of a family that he had been very close with for at least 40 years, while they were vulnerable, grieving, and unable to think straight to be able to anticipate what he was doing.

Additionally, she said he pled no contest, which “puts the court at a real disadvantage”, as she is unable to know if he is remorseful or even believes he is responsible for any wrongdoings. However, she said she understands the no contest plea, as there is a civil case pending.

Lastly, she said due to the conspiracy aspect of the case, he “took friends down” with him. Robinson pointed out that three other individuals were criminally charged with felonies as a result of his actions, including David Mansfield, Jim Johnson, and Ron Roy.

“What I find to be an aggravating circumstance is that you also took friends down with you. This was not a case that was filed against you. You had three other individuals that were criminally charged with felonies based on your actions, based on what you chose to do, and I don’t know whether you thought about that… You did not just betray the Cannon family, you betrayed your friends,” Robinson said.

Judge Robinson also said it was important to her to hear what the Cannon family felt about the plea agreement before accepting it. During victim impact statements, most of the family who spoke agreed that while the sentence does not feel like justice, they wanted the plea agreement to be accepted so they could move on from this trial. Robinson said she did not know whether she would have accepted the plea deal if the family was not in agreement with it.

During Andrea Wilkinson’s victim impact statement, she said the district attorneys on the case said the plea was being given because they did not believe Judge Robinson would sentence Meredith to time behind bars, as he was a first time offender. Robinson said during sentencing that she did not know what she was going to do, and that no one should assume what she would have done.

“But now, this is the best outcome for the court to accept,” Robinson said of the plea agreement.

Victim Impact Statements

Four members of the Cannon family gave victim impact statements including Robert Cannon’s wife Elaine Cannon, and their children Edward “Bubba” Cannon, Heather Cannon, and Andrea Wilkinson. They all touched on Meredith’s betrayal of their trust, saying they will recover financially but they cannot regain the trust and the time spent away from their kids and families as they have gone through this case.

Bubba Cannon said Meredith was made a “rich man” by his parents, but he still stole from them “because he’s greedy”. E. Cannon said she trusted Meredith completely but he made a “cruel and brutal attack” on her family.

H. Cannon said that Meredith has stolen time from them that they should have been spent grieving with their family, and she said, “Allen’s actions are those of a predator.” She said Meredith’s plea in the middle of the trial was “just another self serving act,” and that he would have the court and public believe that he loved her dad but, “Allen only has love for himself and money.”

H. Cannon and Wilkinson also both spoke about how this sentence does not feel like justice, but that they wanted the plea agreement accepted to put an end to the trauma this case has inflicted on their family. H. Cannon said as an attorney in Colorado, she understands the court system and she feels she and her family had their rights, as victims, disregarded. She said she was accused of improper contact with jurors because she stood in line for the restroom. She said she and Wilkinson were accused of breaking the sequestration order, as Wilkinson was a witness, because they spoke about non-trial related issues. She also claimed Meredith’s attorney Blaine Burgess has disrespected her in the past by openly mocking her on Microsoft Teams.

Further, she said Meredith’s son, Andrew, would stand in proximity of her family in the courthouse, in what she believes was an attempt to intimidate them and eavesdrop on their conversations. She said she believes the judicial system has added more trauma to the loss of her father. 

Wilkinson said she has always been a firm believer in the justice system, but this deal does not feel like justice, as there was no guilt given, no remorse shown, damages are great, there is no community service ordered, and there are very little fines and restitution.

“It feels like a very sad day for justice in Sweetwater County,” Wilkinson said.