- The Salt Lake County district attorney announced no charges will be filed for an officer firing a shot at WestFest.
- The officer fired toward a teenager after the teen opened fire and killed three people.
- Matthiaz Ioane-Register, 16, was charged with four counts of aggravated murder for the shooting.
WEST VALLEY CITY — The Salt Lake County district attorney announced Friday criminal charges will not be filed against a police officer who fired a shot while responding to a teen firing a gun at a West Valley City carnival.
Three people were killed on June 15 in a shooting after a dispute between two groups in West Valley City at WestFest. Those who died include an infant and a pregnant woman who were bystanders, and an 18-year-old man believed to be the target of the violence, police said. Two teenagers were also injured by the gunshots.
Matthiaz Centre Lauti Ioane-Register, 16, was charged with four counts of aggravated murder, a first-degree felony, in the deaths of each of the three people who were shot and killed, plus the unborn child of the pregnant woman who was killed. The teen is also charged in 3rd District Court with nine counts of discharge of a firearm — five first-degree felonies, one second-degree felony, and three third-degree felonies. He is being charged as an adult.
The day after the shooting, West Valley police revealed one of their officers had fired a shot at Ioane-Register. The shot did not hit anyone, but because an officer fired his weapon, the critical incident protocol was enacted, resulting in the Salt Lake County District Attorney's Office conducting a review.
Salt Lake County District Attorney Sim Gill announced Friday that his office's review determined no criminal charges would be filed against the officer who fired a shot.
The shooting was deemed to be gang-related, as Ioane-Register's apparent primary target, the 18-year-old who was killed, was a friend of members of a rival gang.
Although he was charged as an adult, Ioane-Register is not eligible for the death penalty or life in prison without the possibility of parole under federal law if convicted. However, he potentially could be sentenced to a term of 25 years to life in prison on each of the four aggravated murder charges if convicted.
