SALT LAKE CITY, Utah (KUTV) — The Utah County Attorney's Office on Tuesday announced formal charges against Michael Aaron Jayne, who is accused of using a semi-truck to kill Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser during a traffic stop on May 5.
The announcement was made at a press conference the day after Hooser's memorial service in Orem. However, prosecutors said they’re not going to answer any questions about the case until the trial is over.
County Attorney Jeffrey Gray read a brief, prepared statement and took no questions. He also said he has received requests for recordings and reports connected to this case, but he plans to deny those requests.
“The jury must do so based only on evidence that is admissible as determined by a judge, not on information a juror might learn from the press," he said.
Gray said his office would be filing all of the charges recommended by law enforcement when Jayne was arrested.
The Utah County Sheriff's Office - the arresting agency - recommended nine charges in total after law enforcement stopped a semi-truck on I-15 after reports of a person on top of the truck's trailer. The Utah Highway Patrol and assisting agencies, including the Santaquin Police Department, pulled the truck over and a woman reportedly escaped from inside. Jayne then drove away, made a U-turn, and used the semi to target the trooper, the woman and Hooser, ultimately hitting and killing Hooser, according to court documents.
He then reportedly fled on foot, stole another vehicle and crashed it more than 150 miles away, where he was taken into custody in Vernal.
The Charges
Jayne could face maximum sentences of life in prison without parole or the death penalty if convicted.
"If Mr. Jayne pleads not guilty at the arraignment, then, by statute, we will have 60 days to file a notice of intent to seek the death penalty," Gray said.
Jayne has also reportedly fled from or threatened law enforcement in multiple states both before and after the Oregon conviction.
Former prosecutor Nathan Evershed, who is not connected to this case, said he’s not surprised the Utah County Attorney wants to withhold certain evidence from the public. He said this is a high-profile case about someone accused of killing an officer, and it’s possible the prosecution could harm their case by releasing too many details.
“I would imagine that the prosecutor could have a concern of a very real threat of a potential change of venue, getting the case out of Utah County,” Evershed said.
Body camera footage has been released to the public during the trial process in other cases before. Could this be seen as a double standard in this particular instance? Evershed said some people may see it that way, but prosecutors are given discretion over which details they release to the press.
“I think each case is very fact-specific and each case is case-specific," he said.
He also said media outlets can talk to the GRAMA board or a judge to try and compel the prosecution to release any body-cam videos, but, that will be a tough argument.
“The press is going to have more of a difficult climb in a case like this where it’s a private citizen that is the defendant and not a public servant that is the defendant,” Evershed said.
Jayne is scheduled to appear in court Wednesday afternoon to be informed of the charges.
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