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FARMINGTON — A Centerville man pleaded guilty Monday to kidnapping a woman and her four daughters, clearing the way to proceed with charges alleging he murdered a Utah Transit Authority worker in Wyoming.
Dereck James "DJ" Harrison, 23, kept his head down and his voice soft as he pleaded guilty to five counts of aggravated kidnapping, one after the other. Each of the first-degree felonies carries a potential sentence of 15 years to life in prison.
Harrison also waived extradition to Wyoming, which will be scheduled following a sentencing hearing Oct. 24.
Harrison's two cases are separate, but both stem from the same alleged crime spree in May. His father, Flint Wayne Harrison, 51, was charged alongside him in both cases but committed suicide in a Davis County Jail cell July 25.
On May 10, the Harrisons lured a Clinton woman and her four teenage daughters to a house in Centerville, 190 N. 700 East, where they were taken into a basement and detained with a shotgun, a baseball bat, zip ties and pre-torn strips of duct tape. The daughters — ages 13, 15, 17 and 18 — broke free and called for help and the Harrisons fled, police said.
Two days later, while the Harrisons were still on the run from police, they allegedly kidnapped UTA worker Kay Porter Ricks, 63, of American Fork, and took him and his state vehicle to Wyoming.
Ricks' body was found May 17 about an hour from the area where the Harrisons were arrested.
Prosecutors believe Ricks suffered a brutal death over an 18-minute period before his body was dumped in the sagebrush off a remote Wyoming road. He was found with his face smashed to the point he was no longer recognizable and his neck slashed three times, according to charging documents.
Following Monday's hearing, Wyoming's Lincoln County Attorney Spencer Allred said the state is prepared to begin moving immediately in the murder case. He expects Harrison could likely appear in circuit court there in November, with a preliminary hearing possible within 20 days of that first appearance.
Allred did not discuss any findings of the investigation, but he said the evidence gives a clear picture of what happened to Ricks and who was responsible.
"We believe our investigation has been thorough enough, so I'm not concerned," Allred said. "We are comfortable moving forward with the charges that we have."
Richard Massey, a spokesman for the Ricks family, fought emotion as he spoke to reporters following Monday's hearing. No amount of head bowing or respectful "yes sirs" from Harrison changes what happened, he said.
"It was difficult to see the face of the man who was the last person to see Kay alive," Massey said. "There is no way that anything he says or does, cooperatively or not, will make us feel any better about the loss of Kay."
While the kidnapping case is separate, Massey said the Ricks family is relieved Harrison has pleaded guilty and will soon head to Wyoming.
Harrison is charged in Wyoming with murder in the first degree, which carries a potential death penalty. Allred said prosecutors will have 60 days from Harrison's first court appearance there to decide whether they will seek to put him to death if he is convicted.
Concerning the potential death penalty, Massey said the Ricks family hopes Harrison "never sees the light of day, and however that is accomplished, they are supportive of."
The Ricks family also anticipates filing a civil case against Harrison and his father's estate, which could include a thorough deposition, Massey said.
As part of the plea deal, prosecutors agreed to recommend that prison sentences for four of the aggravated kidnapping charges run concurrently and will argue about the fifth at the Oct. 24 hearing. If the final sentence is set consecutively, Harrison could be ordered to serve a minimum of 30 years in the Utah State Prison.
But 2nd District Judge Michael Allphin reminded Harrison Monday that he is not obligated to follow any sentencing recommendations.
In exchange for Harrison's plea in the kidnapping case, additional charges — five counts of aggravated assault, a third-degree felony; possession of a firearm by a restricted person, a third-degree felony; possession of a controlled substance, a class A misdemeanor; possession of drug paraphernalia, a class B misdemeanor; and three counts of damaging a communication device, a class B misdemeanor — were all dismissed.
