OGDEN — A 24-year-old man was sentenced to prison for fatally shooting to death a 34-year-old Ogden man. 

Isaac Daniel Duran appeared before Judge Noel Hyde on Thursday, April 21. He admitted to shooting to death Steven Carroll Ferguson with a .357 magnum revolver on the night of Feb. 23, 2015.

Duran pleaded guilty to manslaughter, a second-degree felony; possession of a firearm by a restricted person, a second-degree felony; two counts of discharging a firearm, third-degree felonies; and failure to stop at the command of an officer, a third-degree felony, on March 16. 

Hyde sentenced him to serve two sentences of one to 15 years at the Utah State Prison for the second-degree felonies, and to serve three sentences of up to five years at the prison for the third-degree felonies. He ruled that Duran can serve those sentences concurrently. 

The shooting happened Feb. 23, 2015 on the 3500 block of Jackson Ave. in Ogden. Neighbors, who called police, found Ferguson’s body on the street after they heard gunshots.

Duran was arrested in October 2015 after police say DNA evidence linked him to the scene. After serving a search warrant on his home, police also found a gun matching the one that shot Ferguson. He was originally charged with first-degree felony murder, as well as charges related to possession and discharge of a firearm.

• RELATED: Ogden man pleads guilty to manslaughter in fatal shooting case

Duran said in Thursday’s hearing, “I know what I did was wrong. I know I can’t make up for what I did.” 

Duran’s attorney, Ryan Bushell, had asked the judge to give Duran a second chance and sentence him to probation. 

Duran had grown up in a dysfunctional family and had become a gang member when he was young, Bushell said. 

“He knows his actions are horrific,” Bushell said. “He knows he has taken the life of someone he looked up to like a brother.”

Family members of Ferguson were visibly and audibly upset by that remark. 

Hyde said when he was sentencing Duran, “You made the statement you lost a brother. The fact is you took the life of another individual. It was not a mistake. It was a choice made based on years of other bad choices.”

David Green, Ferguson’s stepfather, spoke at the hearing. He said Ferguson was a good man who was loved by many. 

“I miss Steve very much,” Green said.

Ferguson’s mother did not speak at the hearing. Instead the victim advocate read a statement from her.

In it, Lorrain Green wrote her son did spend 10 years in prison, but when he got out he did everything he could to help children, even those who weren’t his. 

Ferguson’s mother-in-law, Kathy Martinez, also spoke. She said at one time there were 11 children in her home whom Ferguson was helping because they weren’t wanted in their own families.

Weber County Deputy Attorney Brody Flint said the only proper sentence for Duran is prison, not probation.

Flint said Duran is a known Ogden Trece gang member and has embraced that lifestyle since he was young. He had numerous felonies as a juvenile, including a robbery charge, which prohibited him from possessing a gun. 

You can reach reporter Loretta Park at lpark@standard.net or at 801-625-4252. Follow her on Twitter@LorettaPark SE or like her on Facebook.