No hospital release for Utahn who shot his mother and slit her throat in 2006

FARMINGTON — A man who shot his mother twice in the head, slit her throat and stuffed her body in a freezer in 2006 will not be released from the Utah State Hospital, a 2nd District Court judge ruled Wednesday.

The decision comes almost two months after a Sept. 30 court hearing held to consider granting Jeremy Hauck, 34, conditional release. The court heard nearly seven hours of testimony from Hauck's doctor, social workers and from Hauck himself.

Second District Judge Ronald Russell said at that time that he'd take several weeks to consider all the evidence before deciding whether Hauck should be conditionally released.

Hauck was 18 when he shot his mother, Laura Hauck, 52, on Aug. 5, 2006, in their Bountiful condominium. In 2013, after years of court proceedings, he was found not guilty by reason of insanity and sentenced to 15 years to life at the Utah State Hospital. A verdict of not guilty by reason of insanity means the judge determined Hauck was not mentally sound when the murder occurred.

In the ruling filed Wednesday, Russell wrote that Hauck still suffers from schizophrenia and is a "substantial" danger to himself and others. The only issue left for the court to decide, then, is if the proposed conditional release plan can control Hauck's dangerousness. "The court finds and concludes that it does not," Russell wrote.

He continued that the opinions presented in court by Hauck's doctor and social workers seem based on observations and anecdotal evidence.

"In evaluating the credibility and reliability of the testimony presented at the hearing, the court finds that the witnesses' relationships formed with Mr. Hauck and their desire to show success in their treatment program influence their ability to be objective in evaluating Mr. Hauck's potential for dangerousness," Russell wrote.

Russell also wrote that the court isn't persuaded that Hauck's dangerousness has been "adequately controlled." He has been attracted to violent media while receiving treatment, Russell wrote, and has acted violently toward himself and others.

Hauck's lawyer previously argued that, if released, Hauck would submit to regular blood tests to ensure he's taking his mediation. However, Russell wrote that the Utah State Hospital has not carried out blood testing in the past due to lack of funding.

"This element of the (potential release) plan lacks sufficient clarity, detail and explanation as to how and when testing would be accomplished and funded," he wrote.

Further, while Hauck hasn't been recently violent, it is "clear and stipulated" that he may act out if not properly medicated, the ruling reads. Hauck's medication intake is monitored while at the Utah State Hospital, but that structure would be removed if he lived independently, Russell wrote.

The ruling continues that if Hauck were "abruptly released" to find his own housing, it's unclear if he would "appropriately adapt" to living independently without his dangerous symptoms recurring. And if neighbors found out about Hauck's history, it could result in "community conflicts," Russell wrote.

Finally, Russell wrote that the proposed release plan does not address how prohibitions on drugs, alcohol and weapons would be "adequately enforced."

A series of proposed conditional release plans filed in 2nd District Court show Hauck's counsel argue that, if released, he would submit to conditions such as regular searches of his residence by police; checking in regularly with Utah State Hospital staff; and never entering Davis County, where his mother's family lives, without permission.

The hearing

During the Sept. 30 hearing, current and former members of Hauck's care team testified how Hauck has spent time at the library, taken college classes and enjoyed other pursuits away from the hospital, all without supervision. Supervised outings have included visits to stores, restaurants and movie theaters.

His media consumption was also a much-discussed point, particularly "Dexter," the popular Showtime series about a serial killer who works for the police by day and murders criminals by night.

Paul Whitehead, a psychiatrist at the Utah State Hospital, said Hauck is the first patient in 20 years that the hospital is recommending for conditional release.

Hauck's paranoid schizophrenia is under control through medication and therapy, Whitehead said, and he's "99% sure" that some of Hauck's habits, like occasionally talking to himself when he's frustrated, are features of his autism.

These habits have never triggered anything violent in Hauck's unit, he continued, and Hauck is "very reality-based," "resilient," and "stable."

He also addressed questions about Hauck's consumption of violent media like "Dexter," saying it wouldn't be in Hauck's best interest to buffer him from things he'd easily find in the real world.

Whitehead said he's seen Hauck show empathy since arriving at the hospital. Once, when a staffer told him that she'd recently lost a parent, Hauck told her that he'd also lost a parent, Whitehead said.

Sitting in the front row of the court gallery, a family member of Laura Hauck reacted to this detail by doubling over and shaking her head.

During defense attorney Todd Utzinger's questioning, Whitehead said Hauck has been allowed on outings by himself since 2018, up to three hours a day on weekdays. His preference for routine, which Whitehead also largely attributed to Hauck's autism, "is working for his clinical goals."

As long as Hauck remains in treatment, "I would not feel endangered if he were my neighbor," Whitehead said.

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