Estimated read time: 4-5 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that a letter written by a fellow jail inmate who said Curtis Allgier confessed to murder should be open to the public.
The ruling states that 3rd District Judge Sheila McCleve, who determined in 2009 that the letter penned by Brent Cobb was part of the court record and should be released to the public, was correct in her decision.
Allgier, 31, is facing a litany of felony charges after being accused of killing corrections officer Stephen Anderson with his own gun during an out-of-prison medical appointment in 2007.
Allgier's attorneys filed an interlocutory appeal with the state's high court after McCleve's ruling, alleging that letters written by third parties to the case were not relevant and release of the letter could prejudice their case.
Attorneys for the Deseret News and other media outlets argued that the letter was a court document and should be made public.
In the Utah Supreme Court decision, Associate Chief Justice Matthew Durrant said McCleve correctly interpreted the Utah Code of Judicial Administration guidelines. Those rules state that court records are any “books, letters, documents, (or) papers” that are “prepared, owned, received, or retained by a court or the administrative office of the courts" and are public record, Durrant wrote.
He also stated that there are ways to ensure Allgier is given a fair trial even if the letter is released, especially since portions of the letter had already been released through other court filings.
"Because these portions of the letter have been placed by Mr. Allgier into the public arena and are therefore accessible to the media, any significant interests that would be protected by requiring the letter to remain sealed are now greatly diminished," Durrant wrote.
Attorney Jeff Hunt, who represented the News and other media entities in court, said the ruling sets an important precedent about what is a public record. He said the rule made it clear to him that even documents from "non-parties" in the case are public and the court's ruling seconded that.
"It's a strong affirmation of the public's right to know about criminal cases pending in the courts," he said. "The language (the justices) used really drive that point home."
He said the public's right to access is afforded by the Constitution just as the defendant's right to a fair trial.
"Those two rights are not mutually exclusive," Hunt said. "That balance can happen and that transparency is crucial to the public's confidence in the judicial system."
Court officials released the letter Tuesday after the Utah Supreme Court ruling was published.
In it, Cobb states that it was "the Lord Jesus" who prompted him to write the letter about Allgier, who was housed in the cell next to him at the time.
"Mr. Allgier verbally admitted to me that he 'shot' and 'killed' a transportation officer whom worked at the Utah State Prison!" the letter states.
Cobb wrote that Allgier said he shot the officer once in the stomach and once in the chest before shooting "Mr. Anderson in his head." Cobb said he knew "plenty more" but was afraid for his safety, because Allgier allegedly made death threats on the lives of both Cobb and his mother.
Most of the parts relevant to Allgier in the letter were already in the public arena and the accused killer is really only mentioned in the first two pages of the four-page letter. The rest of the letter includes entreaties to be moved and allegations that corrections officers at Utah County Jail were threatening Cobb as well.
Interestingly, Cobb wrote that corrections officials were also interfering with mail, which is an issue Allgier's attorneys have raised in court in the past.
Anderson, 60, was escorting Allgier from prison to a medical clinic on June 25, 2007. After completion of an MRI, prosecutors say the inmate wrested a gun from Anderson during a struggle. Anderson was shot in the head and chest. Allgier then fled the clinic, carjacked a vehicle, led police on a high-speed chase and was eventually captured at a fast-food restaurant, police say.
The Salt Lake County District Attorney's Office has said it will seek the death penalty if Allgier is convicted.
Email:emorgan@ksl.com
