Utah teen charged with attempted murder in Lehi McDonald’s shooting

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LEHI — A dispute over a cigarette that was flicked or taken away from a boy led to another boy being shot in the head in a fast food parking lot in Lehi, according to police.

Court documents reveal new information about a confrontation between two groups who had no prior history with each other in a McDonald’s parking lot, 850 E. Main, just after midnight on Nov. 3.

A 17-year-old Cottonwood Heights boy was with friends entering the restaurant, when two boys leaving the restaurant “flicked away or took away and crushed a cigarette” that was behind the ear of one of the teen’s friends, according to charges filed in 4th District Juvenile Court.

A short time later, the 17-year-old and his friends went outside to confront the two boys, the charges state. The teen first retrieved a handgun that was in the trunk of his car.

The teen pointed the gun at “both the driver and the passenger. The driver got out of the car and (the boy) then put the gun to the neck of the driver. The passenger got out and came around to (the boy) and tried to hit the gun out of (his) hand. At that point, (the boy) pulled the trigger and the gun fired. He stated that the passenger went down but didn’t know if he was hit or not,” according to a search warrant affidavit.

The victim barely avoided serious injury because the bullet grazed his head, according to Lehi police. That victim was taken to a local hospital with injuries not considered to be life-threatening.

The teenager and his friends drove off after the shooting but were stopped by police a short time later.

The Cottonwood Heights teen was charged with attempted murder, a first-degree felony; aggravated assault and obstructing justice, second-degree felonies; plus possession of a handgun without parental permission and consumption of alcohol by a minor, class B misdemeanors.

Charging documents state that the case is being prosecuted under the Serious Youth Offender Act, meaning if convicted, the 17-year-old could be sentenced in both juvenile and adult court.

A second affidavit mentions that the confrontation was recorded on a cellphone and police have obtained a copy of that video. Detectives searching that phone also found a second video “where the suspect appeared to be putting a firearm in the mouth of a female believed to be (the teen’s girlfriend),” the affidavit states.

The girlfriend told police their group had been drinking that night, and she had even received a ticket from police earlier in the evening for underage drinking.