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SALT LAKE CITY — A Utah man was sentenced to two terms of between three and five years in prison on Monday after admitting to shooting at an Amazon delivery truck during a road rage incident in July.
Tyler Joshua Foutz, 25, pleaded guilty on Jan. 29 to two counts of felony discharge of a firearm, a third-degree felony, as part of a plea deal. In exchange, one count of aggravated assault and four charges of felony discharge of a firearm, all third-degree felonies, were dismissed.
Deputy Salt Lake County attorney Clayton Huckaby showed a video of the scene and noted that Foutz shot at the Amazon truck during the day when multiple other people were driving by and could have been hurt.
A semitruck driver told Unified police that he was getting off I-80 at 700 East on July 3, 2023, when another car "crossed four lanes of traffic and nearly ran him off the road." The truck driver honked his horn at the two occupants.
Foutz's brother, Adrian David Brown, slammed on his brakes and Foutz made an obscene gesture to the truck driver before pulling alongside him and challenging him to a fight, charging documents state. Foutz and Brown followed the truck and when the driver stopped, the two men got out of their car and the Amazon driver deployed pepper spray on the two men.
Police say Foutz and Brown appeared to drive off, but then pulled up beside the truck again and Foutz fired six rounds toward it near 4200 South and 700 East in Millcreek. Officers attempted to stop the fleeing vehicle — which police say was being driven by Brown at speeds up to 100 mph — before it hit another vehicle, causing that car to roll and hospitalizing an occupant of the car. The two were arrested before they could get out of the wrecked car.
Defense attorney Sherry Valdez asked the judge to sentence her client to a jail term and probation. She said this was Foutz's first felony, as he has not had a significant criminal history as an adult, although he has a juvenile criminal history. She said he would be more likely to succeed in life if he were released and wouldn't have the same opportunities after a prison sentence.
She said no one was hit in the shooting and no bullet holes were found.
Foutz told the judge he takes responsibility for his actions and understands he could have hurt people. He asked for "at least one good chance" to get back on his feet.
"I can prove that I can be a good person and not make the mistakes I did before. I just need that one chance to show you that I can do it," he said.
But 3rd District Judge Vernice Trease told him he has already had "chance after chance after chance" as a teenager. She said his pre-sentence report recommends prison because he was reckless and showed a disregard for the safety of others.
"It really is a safety issue at this point," she said.
Trease ordered the two terms to run concurrently, and said the parole board can decide whether to give Foutz credit for the 260 days he has already spent in jail.
Brown, 23, pleaded guilty on March 11 to failure to stop at the command of police and felony discharge of a firearm, third-degree felonies, and reckless driving, a class B misdemeanor. Huckaby said Brown admitted to providing the gun to Foutz. He is scheduled to be sentenced on April 29.
