Utah's Cold Cases: Detectives revisit 1980 killing of corrections officer

OGDEN — It was a killing that left detectives stumped.

A Weber County corrections officer was found shot in the head in the middle of the road behind his running Jeep early on the morning of Feb. 9, 1980.

Now, 45 years later, investigators with the Weber Metro Cold Case Task Force are taking a new look at the homicide.

"I believe there is somebody out there that has even more answers to some of our questions and who is responsible for the death of Bryan Pickett," said detective Cam Hartman, investigator with the Weber County Attorney's Office.

At the time, the 22-year-old Pickett was a young father who readily made friends with those around him.

"He was amazing," said Pickett's sister, Dorothy Chuday, during a recent interview with KSL. "Bryan was the goofiest, funniest, kindest kid."

Chuday said her brother, from an early age, wanted to be a forest ranger, a police officer or a DJ, but he settled on a job as a corrections officer as he studied criminology at Utah State University.

She said on the day prior to his death, he seemed troubled.

"He acted like he was in a situation that he didn't know how to get out of," Chuday said. "I said, 'Bryan, you can talk to me about anything,' and he said, 'I know, I just have to work this out myself.' And I said, 'OK, but don't let it go too long before you say something,' and of course, the very next night is when he was murdered."

Pickett's death devastated Chuday, her siblings and their parents.

"It changed the trajectory of our lives — I ended up divorced, my older brother and sister both got divorced during that period of time," she recalled. "Nerves were at an all-time high for everybody."

Everyone hoped that one day answers would come.

"My poor dad — it ate him alive," Chuday said. "We've never stopped — none of us. My parents died not knowing who killed their son."

Hartman said Pickett was shot in the forehead at close range with a high-caliber handgun.

Investigators said they found physical evidence, including a leather glove, a hunting knife and shotgun shells not connected to the murder weapon.

According to Hartman and Pickett's family, the corrections officer had gone with a co-worker to the Kokomo Club, 216 25th Street, in the hours prior to his killing.

"Bryan left after one game of pool and a beer," Chuday said.

Why he left and went to the area that is now Sullivan Hollow Park, 3109 Gramercy Ave., remains unclear, but Hartman said detectives at the time didn't believe Pickett's shooting was a random act.

"The investigators felt like, at the time, this was a very personal crime," Hartman said. "They believe he was sought out and murdered in the street intentionally."

According to Hartman, the subsequent investigation looked at the co-worker who went to the club with Pickett, a biker gang member, numerous former jail inmates and also several potential love interests and girlfriends, but detectives could not pin the crime on any of them.

He said the evidence recovered from the scene had yet to produce significant forensic leads, although Hartman remained hopeful that might change with more advanced testing.

The Weber Metro Cold Case Task Force continues to raise money through its website for that type of testing in this and other cases, and Hartman urged anyone with information about Pickett's death to contact the task force at 801-399-8672.

Hartman said he had a personal connection to the case.

"Bryan and his parents were my neighbors across the street," he said. "I do remember his Jeep and just remember how nice his parents were and his sisters."

He said he hoped he might be able to make a difference for Pickett's family.

"I believe, you know, things happen for a reason, and I really want to find some answers," Hartman said. "I would love to give Dorothy and her sister some closure. That would mean a lot."

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