Man ordered to stand trial for murder in deaths of Utah toddlers playing in a corral

Emily Ashcraft, KSL.com

PROVO, Utah (KSL.com) — A 4th District judge connected Monday ordered Kent Cody Barlow, a man charged pinch causing nan deaths of 2 Eagle Mountain toddlers, to guidelines proceedings for 2 counts of murder.

Two 3-year-old boys, Odin Jeffrey Ratliff and Hunter Charlie Jackson, were playing a equine corral and were killed erstwhile a car near nan roadworthy and veered into Cedar Valley Stables connected May 2, 2022.

RELATED | Judge orders Utah man to guidelines proceedings successful clang that killed 2 boys playing successful corral

Judge Robert Lund ordered Barlow to guidelines proceedings for 2 counts of depraved indifference murder, a first-degree felony, and 1 count of possession of a controlled substance, a people A misdemeanor. Lund said during a proceeding connected Friday that because of nan value of nan case, he would rumor a written alternatively than oral decision.

Barlow, 28, was initially charged pinch 2 counts of manslaughter alternatively than execution and was ordered to guidelines trial connected those charges connected July 28, 2022, by Lund. Several months later connected March 13, 2023, prosecutors amended nan charges, enhancing manslaughter to murder, a first-degree felony.

RELATED | Utah man charged pinch hitting, sidesplitting 2 boys playing successful corral; charismatic says nary plea bargains

‘Depraved indifference’

Before deciding whether location was capable grounds to bid Barlow to guidelines proceedings connected nan upgraded charges, Lund listened to grounds during 4 days passim February and March. He besides reviewed written arguments and listened to attorneys during a proceeding connected Friday.

Deputy Utah County lawyer Ryan McBride based on Barlow’s actions meet nan requirements for “depraved indifference murder.”

Benjamin Aldana, Barlow’s attorney, said nan rule for depraved indifference requires an action to beryllium “specifically directed” astatine nan personification who is killed, and Barlow wasn’t alert of nan toddlers. He said if personification had been visible, aliases if location was a location location alternatively of stables, possibly nan depraved indifference statute would apply.

“That statute doesn’t use here,” he said.

Lund’s determination says astatine 7:16 p.m. connected May 2, 2022, Barlow mislaid power of his car and collapsed it into Cedar Valley Stables. Lund says location were “at slightest 20 people” astatine nan facility, mostly children learning to thrust horses, and nan installation is visible from respective miles away.

“The single-car mishap created a ample debris field. Before colliding pinch nan covered equine stalls, nan car passed done aggregate layers of fencing. … The car deed nan building pinch specified unit that it tore each nan supporting beams retired of nan ground. With nary support, nan tile connected nan building collapsed,” nan bid said.

It said nan stable’s tile illness killed some boys.

Two Eagle Mountain children were killed erstwhile speeding driver collapsed wherever they were playing. A judge ordered nan driver to guidelines proceedings for execution successful nan 2 boys’ deaths connected Monday. | Courtesy Utah County Sheriff

Three others who were successful nan car pinch Barlow testified that he was driving astatine a precocious complaint of velocity and ran a extremity sign.

“All of them told (Barlow) aggregate times to slow down. (He) ignored their pleas,” nan bid says.

It said GPS information from 1 of nan passengers’ phones shows Barlow accelerated to 123 mph instantly earlier nan clang and near nan roadworthy walking astatine 117 mph — nan velocity limit is 45 mph.

“(Barlow) took nary precautions to minimize nan risks that his driving posed to different people. To nan contrary, his nonaccomplishment to heed nan demands of his passengers to slow down and obey postulation laws together pinch his ingestion of a powerful mind-altering supplier exacerbated nan risks his behaviour posed to others,” nan bid says.

It said a humor tie astatine nan infirmary showed Barlow had consumed “a ample magnitude of methamphetamine” astatine immoderate constituent earlier nan crash.

Shortly earlier nan crash, Barlow had been doing doughnuts successful a section adjacent to a shot practice, a coach testified, and caused interest that he mightiness deed someone. Other drivers besides reported seeing a car move very quickly.

Lund’s bid said Barlow “created a highly apt probability” of death.

Odin Jeffrey Ratliff and Hunter Charlie Jackson, some 3 years old, were deed and killed by a car that collapsed into nan corral they were playing successful in Eagle Mountain connected May 2. A judge ordered nan driver to guidelines proceedings for execution successful nan deaths of nan children connected Monday. | Courtesy Cedar Valley Stables

The rule for depraved indifference execution was modified 2 days aft nan clang that killed nan 2 toddlers, changing nan meaning from causing “the decease of another” to causing “the decease of nan different individual.”

Aldana has claimed this alteration created a caller defense, but Lund said he finds nan earlier type of nan statute applies because nan amendment was not made retroactive to incidents that happened earlier nan rule was changed.

Motion to disqualify Lund

On Sunday, up of nan determination to bid Barlow to guidelines trial, Aldana revenge a mobility asking Lund to recuse himself from nan case. He said Lund’s insistence connected holding nan proceedings for Barlow successful September shows he is not impartial, arsenic Aldana contends he whitethorn not person capable clip to hole Barlow’s defense.

Lund group nan proceedings successful September earlier knowing whether nan proceedings would beryllium for manslaughter aliases murder, while nan preliminary proceeding was scheduled for January, nan mobility said. The January proceeding was delayed to February and March aft Aldana tested affirmative for COVID-19. It wasn’t until Monday that Barlow and his lawyer learned whether nan proceedings would beryllium for manslaughter aliases murder, Aldana said.

When Aldana said Friday that location mightiness not beryllium clip to hole for nan proceedings by September, Lund said he has known astir nan proceedings for a while. He told Aldana nan proceedings dates were “firm.”

Aldana’s mobility said nan lawsuit history shows Lund “holds a bias against Mr. Barlow” and his defense team.

“The truth that nan tribunal has many times required that a proceedings mounting beryllium successful spot for this lawsuit … says something,” he said.

Aldana said requiring a lawsuit to spell to proceedings 4 months aft Barlow was ordered to guidelines proceedings will negate his correct to a adjacent proceedings successful nan double-murder case.

This is nan 2nd clip Aldana has made a petition for nan judge to recuse himself successful this case.