Utah
Southern Utah car enthusiasts hold procession for man who died driving Model T Ford
WASHINGTON, Washington County — Classic car collectors gathered Friday morning for a procession in remembrance of Dennis “Deny” Rutkoskie, who died while driving his Model T Ford last month.
The procession was held on what would have been Rutkoskie’s 85th birthday. According to friends, he was a well-known figure in the classic-car collecting community in southern Utah and owned more than 20 classic cars, which he showcased at his shop in Washington.
Longtime friend Doug Chambers brought his 2006 Ford Mustang to the event and said that the procession was less about cars and more about honoring the great man Rutkoskie truly was.
“He was always a great guy, and every week we would meet at Cracker Barrel for what we called, Hot Rod Hangout,” Chambers said. “He would drive a different car every time, it might be a Rolls-Royce one week, and the next week it would be the Model T, or it could be one of his 1904 racers.
“(Losing Deny) was a shock — just a gut punch,” he added. “Myself and my friends couldn’t believe it was real, and then we started seeing pictures on social media and KSL. It’s hard to believe. … When we lose someone, it’s really hard.”
The procession, which included upwards of 50 classic cars, started at the Walmart in Washington City and went down Washington Fields Road all the way to Rutkoskie’s car museum. It was led by local law enforcement and spearheaded by friends such as Tony Lonnett, president of the Desert Rodders Car Club of Southwest Utah.
Lonnett spoke of Rutkoskie’s generosity and reflected on spending time with him during the annual Shop With a Cop event, to which Rutkoskie was a large donor.
“This is a sad event, but it’s going to be really joyous,” he said. “(The procession) shows respect for a man who had the love of cars and enjoyed them immensely. (Deny’s) the kind of guy who made me reflect on how to be a better man. That’s Denny.”
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.
Utah
Here’s who will lead Utah Valley University as its next president
Jon Anderson will be charged with moving the Orem school forward following the death of conservative commentator Charlie Kirk on campus last year.
(Bethany Baker | The Salt Lake Tribune) Incoming UVU President Jon Anderson poses for a photo with his family after an event announcing his selection at Utah Valley University in Orem on Friday, July 17, 2026.
Utah
Beaver County residents set up thousands of sandbags ahead of flashfloods
BEAVER COUNTY, Utah — A massive community effort is underway as volunteers and Beaver County crews distribute thousands of sandbags to protect homes from the potential path of floodwaters.
After the Cottonwood Fires, residents have been waiting for weeks for relief to come in the form of rain, though officials now warn it may come all at once with an increased risk of flooding and debris flow.
Emergency Service Director Les Whitney believes that the fire has left plenty of debris to bring trouble for residents.
“We got a lot of water. We’re bringing debris with it, so tree branches, tree limbs, logs, lots of different size firewood, and that’s all in the creeks. We’re worried about that plugging up our bridges and stuff, so we have heavy equipment and excavators located in strategic places so that we can keep those bridges open,” said Whitney.
An estimated 140 homes and condominiums were spared from the flames, but remain in the paths of floodwaters.
Residents can also pick up sandbags at the Beaver County Sheriff’s Office or at the Beaver County Rodeo Fairgrounds.
Utah
Utah man arrested again for allegedly abusing dog twice in three months
EAGLE MOUNTAIN — An Eagle Mountain man currently on pretrial release in 4th District Court who is accused of abusing his dog has been arrested again for allegedly punching the same animal.
Keith Reaves Davis, 43, was booked into the Utah County Jail on Wednesday for investigation of aggravated cruelty to an animal.
Utah County sheriff’s deputies were called Wednesday afternoon to a grocery store on a report that a man was beating his dog after it had gotten off its leash and was stopped by a bystander, according to a police booking affidavit.
“I reviewed security camera footage from the grocery store, and an individual matching the description of the suspect was seen holding the dog in the air by one paw and repeatedly striking the dog on the right hind leg area. I observed the male strike the dog several times before dropping the dog from approximately 1-2 feet. The strikes appeared to be as hard as the male could hit,” the arresting deputy wrote in the affidavit. “The dog did not cry out or whimper as if the dog was accustomed to the abuse.”
When questioned, Davis “admitted to striking the dog because it was not behaving,” the affidavit states.
An animal control officer who responded to the scene to take custody of the dog noted it was the same dog he had taken from Davis exactly three months earlier during another animal abuse investigation.
In that case, Davis was charged in 4th District Court with aggravated cruelty to an animal, a class A misdemeanor; and public intoxication, a class C misdemeanor, after deputies received a tip from a neighbor that a dog was being abused at Davis’ home, according to charging documents. When questioned, Davis “acknowledged hitting his dog as punishment,” the charges state.
Deputies also reviewed videos that the neighbor had filmed. The neighbor told investigators “there was blood from the dog on the ground of the garage and (the neighbor) can hear the dog screaming as if it’s being hurt. Deputies got the videos from the (neighbor) and you can hear very loudly the dog screaming and crying with a lot of loud banging noises. In one of the videos, you can hear the dog sounding like it is being choked by a collar and is grasping for air,” a police booking affidavit states.
Davis’ next court hearing in the April case is scheduled for July 28.
In their latest booking report, sheriff’s deputies note that they “believe further harm will be inflicted on this dog if it is released back to the male a second time,” and have recommended the dog not be returned to Davis.
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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