Matthew Maddison, a Summit County resident and former USA Climbing coach, will spend up to 15 years in prison after he pleaded guilty to possessing sexually explicit videos involving children.
Last week, Third District Judge Richard Mrazik determined Maddison should serve prison time for the second-degree felony charge. Maddison will receive credit for the 137 days he has spent in the Summit County Jail, but he is required to spend at least one year in prison before petitioning for parole.
Multiple people submitted letters to the court, although only one expressed support of Maddison in an attempt to reduce the severity of his sentence. The letter of support praised Maddison’s involvement as a father and said he has “fully committed to taking responsibility and making positive changes.” The other letters were sealed and unavailable to the public.
His wife also testified during the sentencing hearing.
Prosecutors in May charged Maddison, 37, with 10 counts of sexual exploitation of a minor, a second-degree felony, and three counts of aggravated sexual exploitation of a minor, a first-degree felony. However, 12 of the 13 charges were dismissed in July after Maddison pleaded guilty to one second-degree felony count of sexual exploitation of a minor.
Detectives had been investigating Maddison for weeks at the time of his arrest in April, according to court documents.
A probable cause statement said a social media company filed a report with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children in March, claiming an account on the website had uploaded and distributed sexually explicit materials involving children. The information was forwarded to the Utah Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.
The task force identified Maddison as the account’s owner because of its connection to his USA Climbing email address, court records said. However, USA Climbing, after the arrest, said Maddison’s charges “appear to be unrelated to his coaching responsibilities.”
Law enforcement officials executed a search warrant at Maddison’s Summit County home, and Maddison reportedly admitted to owning the account, its associated email address and the explicit materials.
He also allegedly told law enforcement that he knew the files were illegal to possess.
Maddison was held without bail in the Summit County Jail because prosecutors described him as a “flight risk.” They said Maddison is a citizen of the United Kingdom and didn’t have solid ties to Utah. They also claimed he presented “a danger” to the Summit County community due to the nature of his charges.
“He works with youths and has unfettered access to them as a coach and in a position of authority,” the indictment said. “Additionally, the defendant has a young child who lives in his home. The defendant has successfully surrounded himself with children who are around the same age as the children in the (explicit) files he possessed and distributed, which makes him a direct threat to all children in the community, as well as his home.”
Maddison worked as a strength and conditioning coach and speed team manager for USA Climbing, and the organization confirmed his employment was terminated shortly after the arrest.
USA Climbing, in a press release, also emphasized the safety of its athletes as the organization’s highest priority.
“We are fully compliant with policy and compliance requirements through the U.S. Center for SafeSport, and all (USA Climbing) employees undergo mandatory background checks,” the press release said. “We are cooperating with law enforcement as they conduct their investigation.”
Editor’s note: This story has been updated to reflect that only one letter submitted to the court was in support of Maddison. The others advocated for a stricter sentence.