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Utah officials deny clemency for man set to be executed for 1998 killing of his girlfriend’s mother – WTOP News

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Utah officials deny clemency for man set to be executed for 1998 killing of his girlfriend’s mother – WTOP News


SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Utah officials denied clemency Friday to a man who is set to be executed for…

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Utah officials denied clemency Friday to a man who is set to be executed for the stabbing death of his girlfriend’s mother in 1998.

The decision regarding the fate of Taberon Dave Honie, who is scheduled to die by lethal injection Aug. 8, was announced in a one-paragraph notice from Scott Stephenson, chair of the Utah Board of Pardons and Parole.

“After carefully reviewing all submitted information and considering all arguments from the parties, the Board does not find sufficient cause to commute Mr. Honie’s death sentence,” Stephenson wrote.

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During a two-day commutation hearing this week, Honie asked the parole board to commute his sentence to life in prison, saying he would never have killed 49-year-old Claudia Benn after a day of heavy drinking and drug use had he been in his “right mind.”

Honie said he wanted to continue to live to be a support for his mother and his daughter. His attorneys did not immediately respond to telephone and email messages seeking comment on the clemency denial.

Benn’s family urged the parole board to allow him to be executed, saying they have been devastated by their loss.

They described Benn as a pillar in their family and southwestern Utah community — a tribal council member, substance abuse counselor and caregiver for her children and grandchildren.

Honie, who had a volatile relationship with Benn’s daughter, broke into the victim’s house in Cedar City, the tribal headquarters of the Paiute Indian Tribe of Utah, on July 9, 1998.

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He repeatedly slashed her throat and then stabbed her. Benn’s grandchildren, including Honie’s 2-year-old daughter, were in the house at the time.

“The way he killed her, that’s just sick. … An eye for an eye, as God says it,” Sarah China Azule, Benn’s niece, said during testimony.

Honie was convicted in 1999 of aggravated murder. The judge who sentenced him to death found that Honie had sexually abused one of the children, one of the aggravating factors used to reach that decision.

During the hearing, Honie’s attorneys presented testimony describing his traumatic childhood growing up on the Hopi Indian Reservation in Arizona.

His parents, like many Native Americans, had been put into into government boarding schools that were often abusive, and the defense argued that they did not learn parenting skills, were heavy drinkers and neglected Honie, who began drinking and using drugs including cocaine, heroin and methamphetamine by the time he was a teenager.

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But the state told the board that Honie created more trauma by killing Benn.

“Imagine the intergenerational traumas from Honie’s horrific acts trickling down through time,” Assistant Solicitor General Daniel Boyer said.

Utah has not had an execution since Ronnie Lee Gardner was put to death by firing squad in 2010.

Honie is one of six people awaiting execution in the state. The death sentence for a seventh person, Douglas Lovell, who killed a woman to keep her from testifying against him in a rape case, was overturned Thursday by the Utah Supreme Court. He will be resentenced.

After decades of failed appeals, Honie’s execution warrant was signed in June despite defense objections to the planned combination of the sedative ketamine, the anesthetic fentanyl and potassium chloride to stop his heart. When Honie’s attorneys sued, corrections officials agreed to switch to pentobarbital but the case is still pending.

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One of his lawyers said previously that the defense was reviewing information regarding the change and working to protect his constitutional rights.

“Serious uncertainty still remains about the state’s last-minute execution plan,” attorney Eric Zuckerman said.

Prison officials have agreed to let one of Honie’s lawyers have access to a phone while witnessing the execution in case an emergency motion needs filing, according to a Wednesday court order.

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Slevin reported from Denver, and Brown from Billings, Montana.

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Widow of protester killed files lawsuit against organizers of Utah ‘No Kings’ rally

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Widow of protester killed files lawsuit against organizers of Utah ‘No Kings’ rally


The widow of Afa Ah Loo, the man killed during a No Kings Rally in Salt Lake City, filed a lawsuit against protest organizers and the man accused of firing the fatal shot.

Laura Ah Loo filed the lawsuit Monday, claiming the armed “peacekeeper” and the protest organizers’ negligence caused the death of her husband.

The protest was part of the No Kings Rally, which was held in every state nationwide on June 14, 2025. The National 50501 organization led the movement, with local groups organizing protests in their respective states.

In Salt Lake City, an estimated 10,000 people showed up to protest.

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During the event, Matthew Alder, a member of the security team, allegedly fired into the crowd after spotting a protester carrying a rifle. Prosecutors said he shot three times, striking the armed protester and killing a bystander.

The widow of the man killed is now suing Alder for negligence, with the lawsuit saying it “should have been obvious that any errant shot fired would pose a lethal danger to bystanders.”

MORE | ‘No Kings’ Protest Shooting:

The lawsuit claims that there was no imminent threat, but even if he believed there to be one, Alder could have moved several feet to the west and shot against a wall and not into the crowd.

“Defendant Alder, with little to no known training in crowd control or de-escalation, failed to clear an area behind Gamboa and instead simply started to fire his gun,” the lawsuit reads.

Laura Ah Loo is also suing organizers, claiming they didn’t properly train or vet all the members of the security team, nor did they inform law enforcement and the public of the armed peacekeepers.

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“Defendants’ breaches of these duties resulted in a perfect storm of negligence that caused the only known fatality among a march of millions of Americans,” the lawsuit reads.

She is seeking damages for pain and suffering, lost wages and economic support, and funeral costs.

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Utah drivers rethink budgets as gas prices jump

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Utah drivers rethink budgets as gas prices jump


SALT LAKE CITY — When Kimberly L. pulled up to the gas pump on Sunday, she was unfortunately prepared for the prices that awaited her.

“Between my husband’s truck and my car, we’re well over $300 a month in gas,” she said. “It hits your pocket, and we’ve got a one-working-person household of four, so we’ve had to budget differently.”

This is one of the reasons why she was driving a motorcycle.

“I’m actually probably going to be riding this a lot more often. Gets way better gas mileage than any of our vehicles,” she added.

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According to AAA, as of Sunday, average gas prices in Utah were around $3.16 compared to $2.74 the week prior.

“I went to go get gas the other day, and I spent $10 on two and a half gallons of gas. And it was insane,” said Grace Wieland from Park City. “Most of my activities are down in Salt Lake, so it’s hard to come down here every week and do the things I love to do whenever gas is so expensive.”

“At work, I make around $18 an hour, and that’s not even a full tank. It’s like two hours at work is one tank, which is kind of crazy,” said Addison Lowe, who is also from Park City.

According to Gas Buddy, the rising prices come after the U.S.-Israeli attacks on Iran, impacting ships that carry large amounts of oil that pass through the Straight of Hormuz, a key trade route.

“Gas prices likely continue advancing, oil prices will likely keep climbing until that oil can move again,” said petroleum analyst Patrick De Haan.

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AAA said the last time the national average made a similar jump was in March of 2022 during the Russia/Ukraine conflict.

In the meantime, Utahns told FOX 13 News that they will continue to budget and hope prices go down sooner rather than later.





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Utah midterms are set: Here’s where all the Republican incumbents are running

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Utah midterms are set: Here’s where all the Republican incumbents are running


SALT LAKE CITY — Utah Reps. Celeste Maloy and Mike Kennedy made their reelection bids official this week, announcing they will run for the new 3rd District and 4th District, respectively, under the state’s newly established congressional map.

The plans were first reported by the Deseret News after weeks of discussion among the Utah delegation about how to approach the November elections under the new boundaries. Rep. Blake Moore, R-Utah, will file in the new 2nd District, where he’s already begun gathering signatures.

“The conversations all along have been: What’s the best thing we can do to stand up for Utah, to stand up for representative government, to make sure that what’s happening is constitutional,” Maloy told the Deseret News in an interview. “But now that we’re out of options — we have to file to run next week — I’m going to run in the district that I’ve spent my adult life living in.”

The decisions come after Rep. Burgess Owens announced on Wednesday that he would not seek reelection, paving the way for Maloy and Kennedy to each choose one of the two remaining districts and avoid a messy incumbent-on-incumbent primary.

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The new map reduced Republicans’ stronghold of four House seats down to three with one Democratic seat, sending the delegation into a scramble about who should run where in the new political landscape.

The redrawn boundaries especially complicated Maloy’s and Kennedy’s decisions as their two districts shifted significantly. Under the new lines, the pair both live in the new 3rd District.

But with Owens’ retirement leaving the new 4th District open, it gives room for Kennedy to run there, which leans Republican.

Kennedy to run in Utah’s 4th District

Kennedy highlighted his work in and representation of parts of the 4th District in his official announcement on Thursday.

“I’ve spent more than twenty years practicing medicine in communities throughout the Fourth District and ten years serving many of these communities in the Utah State Legislature,” Kennedy said. “I know these communities, I share their values, and I’m ready to keep fighting for Utah families in Congress.”

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Kennedy and Maloy both praised Owens as he gets ready to exit Congress.

Rep. Mike Kennedy, R-Utah, speaks with members of the media at the Capitol in Salt Lake City on Monday, Nov. 3, 2025. (Photo: Kristin Murphy, Deseret News)

“(Owens) just did the ultimate team-player move, and people here don’t do that,” Maloy said. “I hate that this is a choice that he had to make this year, that he was forced to decide that. I have nothing but love and respect for him and how he makes his choices. … He does what’s best for the team every time, and I think he’s proving that with this decision as well.”

Kennedy said it was an “honor” to serve with Owens in Congress, adding he was “grateful for his service and his friendship.”

The reelection decisions bring an end to the monthslong game of musical chairs that garnered national attention as Democrats were given a rare pickup opportunity in the red state of Utah and the four GOP incumbents were squeezed into three seats.

Owens was long rumored to be considering a departure from public office at the end of 2026, but the Utah delegation kept its cards close to its chest until the new Utah district was solidified.

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The delegation has engaged in talks with one another for months on how to proceed, with several of the incumbents telling the Deseret News that those conversations centered around what would be the best fit for the constituents in the new districts.

Still, Utah Republicans did not go down without a fight. Owens was one of two Republicans in the delegation, along with Maloy, to ask the federal courts to block the new Utah map from taking effect because it was selected by a Utah judge, not the legislature, but that request was denied.

Even with the cleared field, Maloy and Kennedy could still face primary challengers from elsewhere in the state. Republican candidates have said they will file in both the 3rd District, David Harris and Phil Lyman, and the 4th District, Stone Fonua.

Two Republican candidates have declared bids in the heavily Democratic 1st District in Salt Lake County: Riley Owen and Dave Robinson.

Candidate filings for federal races open next week and will be available from March 9-13. Primary elections will be held on June 23.

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Maloy is gathering signatures to qualify for the ballot, she told the Deseret News. Since making her reelection news public, Maloy has gotten several calls from constituents back home to volunteer for signature-gathering efforts.

The Key Takeaways for this article were generated with the assistance of large language models and reviewed by our editorial team. The article, itself, is solely human-written.



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