Estimated read time: 4-5 minutes
- Michael Aaron Jayne, facing a capital murder charge, expressed concerns about his defense team Wednesday.
- Jayne, charged with killing Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser, asked for a private hearing with judge.
- Judge Thomas Low said he will think about how to address Jayne's concerns, and scheduled a short hearing next week.
PROVO — A man facing a capital murder charge for the death of a Santaquin police officer says he has concerns about the attorneys assigned to represent him.
"My life is at stake. I'm fighting for my life and I do have some serious concerns about my defense," Michael Aaron Jayne told the judge overseeing his case in a hearing Wednesday.
Jayne, 43, of Garrett, Indiana, is charged with nine felonies, including aggravated murder, a capital offense, for the death of Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser on May 5, 2024. Jayne is accused of intentionally steering a semitruck toward Hooser, striking and killing him.
Hooser and a Utah Highway Patrol trooper conducted a traffic stop on Jayne, who was driving a semitruck on I-15. As Hooser was speaking with Jayne, a female passenger ran toward officers, telling them she had been held against her will.
The officers were preparing to take Jayne into custody when he drove away, made a sharp U-turn and drove directly toward the officers and the woman, according to charging documents. Hooser was pinned between the semi and the trooper's vehicle and died on impact. Jayne fled on foot and in multiple stolen vehicles before being arrested near Vernal.
Fourth District Judge Thomas Low did grant Jayne's written request that prompted Wednesday's hearing to remove an attorney who was in the process of being appointed to his case as a second attorney, allowing yet another attorney to take that position. The judge said he wanted time to consider Jayne's request at the hearing to speak with the judge outside of a courtroom or in the presence of prosecutors about other issues related to his attorneys.
Rudy Bautista has been assigned to his case for almost a year after the Utah County Public Defender's Office said it did not have enough attorneys certified to handle a death penalty case. He said Jayne had made multiple requests for a second attorney that were not feasible, including out-of-state attorneys.
Since prosecutors are seeking the death penalty, Jayne is entitled to have two death-penalty certified attorneys representing him.
Bautista said Brad Henderson, a Utah attorney he has worked with before, was ready to step in and would be suitable co-counsel.
Deputy Utah County attorney Chad Grunander said he did not have an opinion about allowing the other attorney to withdraw as Jayne requested, but he said he has some reservations about Henderson joining the case just four weeks before a scheduled preliminary hearing. He said it is a "relatively complex case" with high stakes because the death penalty is on the table.
A two-day preliminary hearing, where witnesses will testify and Low will determine if there is enough evidence for Jayne to stand trial on the charges, is scheduled for June 30 and July 1.
Grunander said he wants to make sure this stage of the case is done right.
Jayne said he is worried about bringing up concerns protected under attorney-client privilege in front of the prosecuting attorneys. He said he cannot go through his attorneys to file a sealed document for the judge with complaints about his attorneys, because he doesn't think they would file it.
Jayne said the concerns about his case that he wants to bring to the judge are serious and would need to be addressed before a preliminary hearing. He asked for these concerns to be raised in a private hearing with him, his attorneys and the judge — something typically prohibited in a criminal case.
The one concern he did bring up directly was that he is having a hard time communicating with his attorney, saying that it is "very difficult."
Low said he would respond to this request in writing after doing some research into what options there are to address Jayne's request. He said he knows one of Jayne's concerns in the case has been keeping the process moving.
Bautista said after Jayne's request in court that it might be a good idea for him to file a request to delay the preliminary hearing.
"Everything has been explained repeatedly, but there seems to be a breakdown," Bautista said.
A hearing was scheduled for June 11 to discuss how the concerns are being addressed and whether the preliminary hearing will need to be moved.
