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PROVO — More than four years after Riley Powell, 18, and Brelynne "Breezy" Otteson, 17, were killed, a jury trial is finally beginning for the man charged with murdering them.
Police found the bodies of Powell and Otteson inside the Tintic Standard Mine near Eureka after a monthslong search.
Jerrod Baum, 46, is charged with killing the couple in December 2017. Baum is facing two counts of aggravated murder and two counts of aggravated kidnapping, first-degree felonies; two counts of desecration of a body and one count of possession of a weapon, third-degree felonies; and obstruction of justice, a second-degree felony.
Baum's girlfriend, Morgan Henderson, testified in a previous hearing and told police that the two were visiting her when Baum came home, bound them in their Jeep and drove to the mine where he killed them. She said Baum also threatened her. Prosecutors say Baum slit their throats and threw their bodies down the abandoned mine shaft.
Otteson's aunt, Amanda Davis, has been vocal about seeking the death penalty for Baum — something that the Utah County Attorney's Office said it planned to do. But last year, County Attorney David Leavitt changed his mind and said he won't seek the death penalty in Baum's case or in any future case.
"Our families have mixed emotions today as it has been a long journey to get to here today. It isn't the pursuit of justice as we had hoped as the death penalty is no longer being pursued. However, after four years of waiting, we are more than ready to move forward. Breezy and Riley deserve justice and we have patiently waited for this time," Davis said.
"What we have ... learned is that the death penalty does not promote community safety. It is not an effective deterrent," Leavitt said in September. "It simply demonstrates our societal preference for retribution over public safety."
Powell and Otteson's relatives were blindsided by Leavitt's reversal and Davis said then that she was heartbroken.
The Utah Legislature is considering a bill during the current legislative session, HB147, which would end the death penalty in Utah, but the bill failed to pass in a committee meeting on Feb. 14.
Jury selection is expected to last a week and a half, in a trial that is expected to last multiple months. Wednesday, potential jurors were given a virtual introduction to the case from 4th District Judge Derek Pullan. The jurors will be coming into the court for consideration over the next week.
