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PROVO — Deputy Utah County attorney Ryan McBride described for jurors Monday a grisly scene of a young couple's last moments.
Jerrod Baum stabbed Riley Powell multiple times as the 18-year-old and his girlfriend Brelynne "Breezy" Otteson were kneeling near a mineshaft with their hands bound, McBride told jurors during opening arguments in Baum's double murder trial.
Powell fell to the ground, where Baum continued to stab him, McBride said. The fatal blow was a stab wound through Powell's neck.
Baum then turned to Otteson, as the 17-year-old was crying and she begged him not to kill her, McBride said. Baum walked behind her then slit her throat, he said, then threw both of their bodies into a mineshaft, just feet away from where they were stabbed.
McBride said much of the details of the killings came from Morgan Lewis, Baum's girlfriend at the time, who was feet away from the two when they were stabbed. Lewis testified in 2019 that she believed Baum would kill her too, though, he asked for help hiding evidence of the killings. According to McBride, Baum started to try and cover up the crime scene and later told Lewis to hide Powell's Jeep. She was not "handling it well" after the killings, McBride said, which prompted Baum to threaten to kill her by cutting off her head.
But defense attorney Dallas Young told jurors the prosecution's case is flawed, saying Lewis' statements have been inconsistent and they don't match the evidence.
Over the next several weeks, the Utah County jury will hear evidence and testimony regarding the December 2017 deaths that occurred in a rural Utah desert outside of Eureka, Juab County. The trial is expected to continue into early May.
Baum, 45, is on trial for two counts of aggravated murder, a first-degree felony; two counts of aggravated kidnapping, a first-degree felony; two counts of desecration of a dead body, a third-degree felony; obstruction of justice, a second-degree felony; and possession of a dangerous weapon as a restricted person, a third-degree felony.
Opening statements from both the defense and prosecution signaled that the trial will largely focus on Lewis' testimony and statements. Lewis was also a friend of Powell and Otteson at the time of their deaths. She has already testified against Baum in 2019, as she took to the witness stand during his preliminary hearing. She has previously been referred to as Morgan Henderson.
After the killings, McBride said Lewis told police they hid the Jeep and returned to Baum's home, where they bleached their clothes and bathed in bleach to destroy any potential evidence. The prosecutor told the jury that police were nearly running out of leads before gradually getting Lewis to tell them details of the killings.
Lewis had invited Powell and Otteson over to Baum's house while he was away, though Baum caught the two and tied them up in the back of a car. Baum then got Lewis out of the house before driving her and the bound young couple into the mountains where they were killed, McBride said.
Young also largely focused on Lewis' statements to police during opening arguments. However, he was quick to point out the numerous inconsistencies in her statements, and how the state had charged the wrong person. He pointed to Lewis' guilty pleas to 10 counts of obstructing justice in connection with the case, as she pleaded guilty in October 2018 to lying to police during the course of the investigation.
Baum's attorney described the case as flawed in numerous ways, saying that Juab County police investigating the disappearances of Powell and Otteson were under a great deal of pressure to resolve the case. He also said that Lewis' testimony as to how the young couple was killed doesn't line up with forensics, though Baum had already been charged by the time those results were available.
"There was too much to Morgan (Lewis') story," Young said. "The train had left the station and the blinders were on."
By the time Lewis testified in Baum's 2019 preliminary hearing, she had already pleaded guilty to all 10 felony obstruction of justice charges. Her potential prison time was suspended while Baum's case was active, as she agreed to testify against him.
Lewis took the witness stand about midday Monday, as she began to tell the jury how she had met Baum on New Year's Eve of 2016 and lived with him prior to the deaths. She said she had met Powell while living in Baum's house while Baum was in jail following an unrelated arrest. Later, she moved out of Baum's home while he was in jail and began living with another man, Clint Miller. Lewis testified that Miller later died in a car crash, and she moved back to Baum's home. After moving back, Lewis said Baum cut her left forearm as part of what she described as a "ritual," adding that it was the first time he had hurt her.
On the night of the killings, Lewis said Baum was supposed to be staying with a family member, so she invited Powell over. When Christine Scott, another deputy Utah County attorney, asked her why, Lewis said she wanted to talk with someone about Miller, whom Powell had known. Lewis said Baum didn't want her to have people over when he wasn't around.
Lewis told the jury Monday that Powell and Otteson arrived around midnight and stayed for roughly 20 minutes. Some in the group smoked marijuana before Lewis gave Powell some cigarettes. He and Otteson then left, and Lewis prepared to go to bed.
While laying bed, Lewis said Baum came home and "I knew I was in big trouble."
She said Baum told her to get dressed because they were going for a drive. She walked outside to find Powell's Jeep in the driveway, and she could see both Powell and Otteson in the cargo area of the car. She said Baum climbed into the driver's seat, and he was the only one in the car talking as they drove through Eureka.
"I knew that this is really bad, and I didn't know what was gonna happen or what to do," Lewis testified.
Baum later pulled the car over on the side of a dirt road, Lewis said, and he got out. Lewis said she then went to the back of the Jeep and saw that both Powell and Otteson were tied up.
Lewis is expected to resume her testimony on Tuesday.
Outside of the courthouse, Amanda Davis, Otteson's aunt, told KSL Monday that she hopes for justice to be served after a yearslong wait for a resolution.
"It's unreal that we're here," Davis said. "We have fought tooth and nail to get here and it's an emotional day to know that we've made it, and that we can finally see it through."
Bill Powell said he misses his son every day, and his family wants justice, though that's easier said than done.
"They say we'll get justice hopefully at the end, but I personally feel there's not such a thing as justice," Bill Powell said. "There will never be justice in my mind."
If convicted, Baum's maximum punishment would be life in prison without the possibility of parole, as a potential death sentence is no longer on the table. In September, Utah County Attorney David Leavitt announced he was withdrawing plans to seek a potential death sentence for Baum, a decision that the victims' families still disagree with.
"The death penalty was taken off the table, and we had to come to terms with that, and we just hope that justice is served for these two and we can start the next step of our healing process," Davis said Monday.
