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AMERICAN FORK — A Lindon man is now facing criminal charges for a crash he allegedly caused in 2021 that resulted in the deaths of two people.
Cody Joseph Laycock, 24, was charged Thursday in 4th District Court with two counts of manslaughter, a second-degree felony; negligent driving while using a controlled substance resulting in serious injury, a third-degree felony; exhibition driving and marijuana use, class B misdemeanors; and failing to stay in his lane, an infraction.
On Nov. 6, 2021, American Fork police responded to a head-on crash on Main Street near 200 East involving a 2019 Audi TT and a 2011 Toyota Avalon, "causing massive damage to both vehicles and injuries to both the Avalon's occupants and the Audi's passenger," according to charging documents.
Two people were in the Audi, including Laycock, the driver, and three women were in the Toyota, ages 91, 66 and 48. The 91-year-old woman died within an hour of the crash, the driver died three days later, and the third woman "suffered brain injuries and had to undergo major surgery to reposition her internal organs which had been displaced by the force of the collision," the charges state.
When police asked Laycock what happened, he replied, "Driving stupid," according to the charges. "Later, Mr. Laycock approached other officers and volunteered that the crash was his fault and he wanted to own up to what he had done."
Laycock allegedly told police he was taking his cousin for a ride in his car and while stopped at a traffic light, he "asked his cousin if he wanted to see what the Audi could do, and turned off the vehicle's electronic stability control," which "controls the torque vectoring of each tire. He said it is designed to prevent the car from drifting sideways or burning out on acceleration.
"Mr. Laycock admitted that he turned it off to get 'full power from the car,' and that he knew it was a trade-off in which the vehicle has more power but is no longer able to help the driver 'stay safe,'" charging documents state.
Laycock then said he took the S-curve onto Main Street "a little bit to fast" and "lost control," according to police.
"He estimated his speed at 45-50 mph. Later, a collision study by … the Utah Highway Patrol concluded that the Audi's speed was 57 mph as it began to skid out of control. The posted speed limit in that section of Main Street is 30 mph," the charges state. "Witnesses of the accident described the Audi as attempting to 'drift' through the S-curve."
Police determined that impairment was not a factor, even though Laylock had used marijuana in recent days and "had a low level of active THC" in his system on the day of the crash, the court documents say.
