Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
- A jury convicted Robert Boyatt of murder for intentionally hitting Victor Hershberger.
- Boyatt faces 15 years to life in prison with sentencing scheduled for Dec. 8.
- Boyatt's vehicle was found abandoned with evidence linking him to the crime.
SALT LAKE CITY — A jury has convicted a Utah man of murder for using his car to intentionally hit and kill another man who was on a scooter.
Robert Johnson Boyatt, 55, was charged in July 2023 in 3rd District Court with murder, a first-degree felony; obstruction of justice, a second-degree felony; and failing to remain at the scene of an accident involving death, a third-degree felony.
Victor Hershberger, 61, was riding a scooter near 1020 West and 1000 North about 1:15 a.m. on July 3, 2023, when police say Boyatt drove by him going the other direction.
A witness said the car that hit Hershberger "flipped around and literally went on the other side of the road and slammed (Hershberger) hard from behind and kept going," while a second witness stated that "she observed Hershberger crossing the street, when 'a red Honda flipped around at the same time and intentionally ran him over and took off,'" according to charging documents.
At the beginning of the trial on Oct. 21, prosecutors dismissed the charge for failing to remain at the scene of the accident. The trial included two full days of arguments where the prosecution used photos from the crime scene and witness testimony to try to prove the crash was intentional rather than accidental, as the defense argued.
The jury deliberated for less than three hours on Friday before convicting Boyatt of both murder and obstruction of justice. He faces 15 years to life in prison for the murder charge. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Dec. 8.
Investigators believe Boyatt was traveling between 36 mph and 38 mph when he hit Hershberger. The vehicle was found abandoned in a parking lot near 250 N. Redwood, court records state.
Boyatt was arrested a few days later at a campsite near Grantsville, where investigators believe he had been camping to evade capture.
"It was determined that Boyatt knew (Hershberger) and … was looking for (him) and 'has been on a vengeance spree' against (Hershberger)," the police booking affidavit states.
When questioned, detectives say Boyatt changed his story several times about what happened, "but eventually admitted that he had recognized Victor Hershberger as the person he hit with his car, and said he recognized Hershberger when he came up on the windshield," the charges state. He claimed, however, that Hersherberger "came out of nowhere" and that he "panicked" after hitting him.
"Although (Boyatt) denied intentionally striking the victim, he acknowledged that he had recently learned that the victim and (Boyatt's) ex-girlfriend had put a 'protective order' on him," the charges say.
