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PROVO — It has been five years since Provo police officer Joseph Shinners was shot while attempting to arrest the man who is charged with killing him. His murder trial is finally set to begin on Feb. 27.
Over the last few weeks, attorneys have been attending hearings to finalize details of the trial for Matt Frank Hoover and proposing jury instructions.
On Jan. 5, 2019, police were attempting to arrest Hoover for probation violations in the parking lot of an Orem Bed Bath and Beyond when Hoover refused commands to surrender.
An officer reached into Hoover's truck through the passenger door to try and pull Hoover out when Hoover put the vehicle in reverse, and backed into a police vehicle, a police affidavit states. Hoover then allegedly drove forward, sideswiping a storefront, then drove through a parking lot before coming to a stop.
When the vehicle stopped, Shinners, 29, tried to help the officer on the passenger side get Hoover out of the vehicle. Court documents say that's when Hoover shot Shinners once on the left side of his chest, and Shinners returned fire, striking Hoover once in the abdomen.
Shinners was wearing a bulletproof vest, but the bullet hit him in an area that was not covered. At first, other officers didn't realize Shinners had been shot. But after he stumbled away from the truck and kneeled on the pavement on one knee, other officers quickly recognized something was wrong. Shinners was rushed in a police car to a local hospital where he later died from his injury.
Charging documents say Hoover had no intention of going back to prison, and every intention of having a shootout with police.
Even Hoover's ex-wife told investigators that he "talked daily about not going back to prison and getting into a shootout with the police and that they would 'go out' like the characters in (his) favorite movie, 'Natural Born Killers,'" the charges state.
Hoover, 45, is charged with aggravated murder, a capital offense, but prosecutors have decided not to seek the death penalty. He is also charged with possession of a dangerous weapon as a restricted person, a second-degree felony; and failure to stop at the command of police and drug possession, third-degree felonies.
During a hearing on Jan. 10, attorneys discussed the size of the jury and how to proceed with jury selection. Fourth District Judge Kraig Powell determined that there will be an eight-person jury, and a larger jury is not required for the case.
Attorneys said the trial could last three weeks and could be an emotional trial.
The trial has been delayed, and Powell reluctantly agreed to move the trial from early 2023 to 2024 after it become clear moving forward with trial at that point was unrealistic. At that point, Hoover's attorney said she had received a list of 118 witnesses from prosecutors, and Utah County deputy district attorney Chad Grander said they plan to call about half of those witnesses.
Another pretrial conference is scheduled in the case for Feb. 8.
