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WEST JORDAN — The ex-girlfriend of the man who fatally shot Draper Police Sgt. Derek Johnson accepted a plea deal on Tuesday.
Traci Lee Vaillancourt, 35, who was originally charged in 3rd District Court with two counts of obstructing justice, a second-degree felony, in the Sept. 1, 2013, shooting death, took pleas in abeyance. She pleaded no contest to both charges. In exchange for her pleas, the charges were reduced to third-degree felonies.
If Vaillancourt complies with all the terms of her plea deal during her 36 months of probation, the court will consider reducing the charges to class A misdemeanors rather than a full dismissal, which is typical for plea in abeyance cases, according to court records.
As part of her probation, Vaillancourt must submit to random drug tests, abstain from drugs and alcohol, plus complete the House of Hope inpatient treatment program and any treatment recommended by Adult Probation and Parole.
"Traci’s plea reflects her desire to end what has been an incredibly difficult process for both her and the Johnson family. As a no contest plea allows, Traci maintains her innocence, as she has done throughout the course of this case. However, she recognizes the need for closure and the need to start a new chapter of her life," defense attorney Matt Kober said in a prepared statement.
On Sept. 1, 2013, Johnson was on his way back to the Draper Police Department after his overnight shift when he stopped to check on what he thought was a stranded motorist.
Without warning, Timothy Troy Walker, 35, shot Johnson through an open window and continued to shoot at him while Walker attempted to drive away. He then shot Vaillancourt outside the vehicle and reportedly told her, "This is it, baby" and shot himself as other officers approached.
Traci's plea reflects her desire to end what has been an incredibly difficult process for both her and the Johnson family. As a no contest plea allows, Traci maintains her innocence, as she has done throughout the course of this case. However, she recognizes the need for closure and the need to start a new chapter of her life.
–Matt Kober, defense attorney
Vaillancourt had several "serious discrepancies" in accounts to police of what had happened, according to investigators. Defense attorney Ryan Holtan said Vaillancourt's conflicting statements were made under physical and mental stress and that she never intended to impede the investigation.
A four-day trial was scheduled to begin in January.
Walker pleaded guilty in July to aggravated murder and was sentenced to life in prison.
As part of the plea deal, Vaillancourt, who has been either watched by police at the hospital or incarcerated at the Salt Lake County Jail since the shooting, was released from jail Tuesday evening.
"We're satisfied with the resolution. We've been discussing it with the family. We believe it was in the interest of justice and we're pleased the matter has been resolved," said Salt Lake County deputy district attorney Jeff Hall.
Randy Johnson, Derek Johnson's father, said Tuesday that his family is pleased that Vaillancourt accepted the plea deal. But he also noted that she doesn't have any room for messing up.
"She'll be on probation for three years, and it's a pretty strict probation. So we wish her the best as far as being able to change her life around and coming out at the end of that being in a better place," he said.
Johnson added that his family is not concerned that Vaillancourt will not serve any jail time in addition to the time she's already served.
"From the very beginning we really felt like this was about Derek and it was about the service he provided to the community. And we didn't want our life to be consumed by the failures that Traci and Timothy Walker had in their lives. So we have not let it consume us," he said.
Johnson also noted that in light of the recent controversies nationwide involving police use of force, the public needs to start respecting the job that officers do.
"Derek stopped to provide a service and to help someone. We as a society need to make a decision that we want to work with police officers and not against them. Many of the recent instances where people have been injured have occurred because we don't respect what police officers do. And if we would do that, the police would be able to do their job a lot easier," he said.
