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VERNAL — A Utah man that police say tried to fake his own death after being charged with rape of a child has been charged in a separate case.
Ted Lee Whitehead, 37, of Roosevelt, was charged Nov. 9 in 8th District Court with rape of a child, a first-degree felony. The alleged incident happened in 2012, according to court records.
Whitehead was previously charged in April 2016 with rape and rape of a child, both first-degree felonies, in two separate incidents, one from 2016 and another from 2012, according to court records.
He was arrested when the original charges were filed, but posted bail and was released from the Duchesne County Jail. After that, police believe Whitehead tried to fake his own death and disappeared. In April, after police had been collecting evidence that he did not actually commit suicide, Whitehead walked into the lobby of the Wasatch County Sheriff's Office to surrender.
Whitehead, who is being held in the Uintah County Jail, made an initial appearance on his new charge on Monday. His next court hearing in that case was scheduled for Jan. 3.
His next hearing on the other two cases, for which he has already been bound over to stand trial, was scheduled for next Monday. During his hearing in October, Whitehead's attorney told the court that his client "is not ready to enter pleas. He states there is a laptop that still needs to be analyzed," according to court records. The attorney also wants Whitehead to have a hearing regarding his mental health, court records state.
In his original rape of a child case, Whitehead's attorneys also filed a motion at the end of October for Giglio/Brady materials. Giglio/Brady is named after two U.S. Supreme Court cases that determined prosecutors had to turn over any evidence of deals struck between witnesses and the government in exchange for their testimony.
Whitehead's attorney states the request specifically applies to two Duchesne County sheriff's deputies, according to court documents. He is seeking, "all complaints filed against the detective and officer and the complaints that were sustained, all disciplinary action(s) taken against the detective and officer and the nature/extent/outcome of all investigation(s) being conducted by Duchesne County Sheriff’s Office or District Attorney’s Office as well as any other state agency."
