Utah
Utah’s self-defense laws in spotlight following two high-profile cases
SALT LAKE CITY (KUTV) — Utah’s self-defense laws are in the spotlight following two high-profile cases. A law that went into effect in 2021 allows defendants to challenge the charge before trial by proving their use of force was justified.
The law requires the state to present “clear and convincing evidence” that a defendant’s use of force was not justified, with a judge deciding the outcome. If the prosecution fails to meet this burden, the case is dismissed with prejudice, meaning it can never be refiled.
At the time, House Bill 227 chief sponsor, state Rep. Karianne Lisonbee, said she was trying to decrease the risk to Utahns whose lives could be upended with lengthy and costly prosecutions and incarceration after trying to protect themselves. 2News Investigates asks if the justification hearing is working as Rep. Lisonbee intended while prosecutors claim it is an even more rigorous review for them that could be resulting in fewer cases filed.
MORE | Previous Reports
Body Camera Footage Captures Matt Alder’s Statements Following “No Kings” Shooting
On June 14, 2025, Arthur Folasa “Afa” Ah Loo was shot in the head during the “No Kings” march in downtown Salt Lake City. A safety volunteer, previously called a “peacekeeper,” Matt Alder told police that he saw a man later identified as Arturo Gamboa holding a rifle and told them he believed Gamboa was preparing to open fire on the protesters. Alder shot at Gamboa three times, injuring him and fatally striking Ah Loo.
Body camera footage from another safety volunteer at the scene captured Alder telling him what he saw prior to firing his gun. To be clear, Alder’s attorney, Phil Wormdahl, gave 2News Investigates permission to use the footage of his client. Police body camera footage from that day is not being released while the case is pending.
Matt Alder: Guy was around the corner, had an AR — he was ducked in around the corner like this — he was like loading his rifle and sh*t. I saw him. I fired a couple shots at the building to try to warn him off, get him to stop and he just took off.
Matt Alder: I can’t believe it. I fu**ing saw him, he was fu**ng loading an AR right fu**ing there.
A man asks Alder, “Did you just freeze for a second, couldn’t fu**ing believe it, or did you go for your gun?”
Matt Alder: For like half a second I pulled my gun, got behind the column, and I took shots at him.
Matt Alder: I saw him loading the fu**ing rifle like that dude was definitely not there for fu**ing fun.
Alder then asks about the man on the ground.
Matt Alder: F**k me, I hope that guy’s all right.
Earlier in the footage, he is seen kneeling down on the ground around responders who were trying to tend to Ah Loo.
Matt Alder Charged With Manslaughter 172 Days Later
It took nearly six months for the Salt Lake County District Attorney’s Office to file criminal charges in this case. On Dec. 3, Salt Lake County District Attorney Sim Gill and Deputy District Attorney Josh Graves filed one count of Manslaughter, a Second-Degree Felony, against Alder in connection with Ah Loo’s death. The information filing states that the “defendant did recklessly cause the death of another.”
That same day, DA Gill held a press conference at his office. He explained the screening process in this case.
“We went through a very sort of arduous process internally with our entire homicide team, and we tried to turn every stone we could,” Gill said.
He also said they weighed the evidence against Utah’s self-defense laws and the state’s self-defense justification law.
On December 3, 2025 Salt Lake County District Attorney Sim Gill and Deputy District Attorney Josh Graves charged Matt Alder with one count of Manslaughter, a Second Degree Felony. (KUTV)
Road Rage Case Involving Death of Pat Hayes
Another example for the 2News investigation is the Sept. 25, 2024, shooting death of Pat Hayes in Wasatch County following a road-rage incident between Hayes and Greg DeBoer at Jordanelle State Park in the Ross Creek area. That deadly shooting was captured by surveillance cameras atop the buildings.
Greg DeBoer: “Oh yeah. Oh yeah. Oh yeah. Oh yeah.”
Pat Hayes: “You want to get out. Come on ***** boy. Come on. Come on ******. What’s wrong, what’s wrong. Come on. Come on, you little *****.”
Pat Hayes: “Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow.”
In October, Jim Bradshaw, the civil attorney for Hayes’ family, questioned why the Wasatch County Attorney’s Office won’t let a jury decide this case. Bradshaw told Judge Jennifer Mabey, “The conduct in this case is taking Pat Hayes life. And I don’t think anyone disputes that Mr. DeBoer did that — he’s admitted that.”
In a statement to 2News Investigates, County Attorney Scott Sweat wrote, “The Wasatch County Attorney’s Office does not believe that there is a likelihood that the evidence can disprove beyond a reasonable doubt the assertion of self-defense in this case.”
An excerpt from Wasatch County Attorney Scott Sweat’s statement in the Greg DeBoer case as to why his office could not disprove self-defense. (KUTV)
No homicide charge. No justification hearing. DeBoer is charged with obstruction of justice for allegedly hiding the gun used to kill Hayes under a rock in his backyard.
The Justification Hearing Law
In 2021, Utah State Representative Karianne Lisonbee (R-District 14) was the chief sponsor of House Bill 227, creating a new hearing called a “justification hearing.”
During that hearing, prosecutors must prove to a judge that self-defense does not apply and the defendant’s use of force was not justified.
It’s a lower standard here in that self-defense does not apply by “clear and convincing evidence.” But during a jury trial, it’s “proof beyond a reasonable doubt.” The judge then decides whether the use of force was justified. If the judge finds that it was justified, the court dismisses the case with prejudice. If the judge rules it was not justified, the defendant can still present a self-defense claim to a jury.
Rep. Lisonbee Says the Law Is Working as She Intended
Rep. Lisonbee was not available for an on-camera interview for this report but says the law is working as she intended. 2News Investigates asked her about both cases, that of Matt Alder and Greg DeBoer. Rep. Lisonbee criticized the delay in Alder’s case, attributing it to failures in the Salt Lake County District Attorney’s office. She maintained that the law is functioning as intended, allowing for prompt and appropriate charges if evidence supports it. She issued the following statement to 2News Investigates.
Utah State Representative Karianne Lisonbee criticized the Salt Lake County District Attorney for the length of time it took his office to file a criminal charge against Matt Alder. (KUTV)
2News Investigates provided Rep. Lisonbee’s statement to DA Gill and asked for a response to her criticism.
Keith Chalmers, communications manager for the Salt Lake County District Attorney’s Office, sent the following response via email:
“The Salt Lake County District Attorney’s Office requested the grand jury on Oct. 6, the earliest date available to do so. The panel denied the grand jury on Nov. 5, but Gill said a similar case in Massachusetts helped shine some light on a path forward on charges. Furthermore, our ballistics test results, which were looking at whether the bullet that killed Mr. Ah Loo was a ricochet, did not come back until Nov. 20,” said Salt Lake County District Attorney Sim Gill.
Salt Lake County District Attorney Sim Gill’s response to 2News Investigates regarding Rep. Lisonbee’s criticism. (KUTV)
Former Prosecutor Weighs In on How Law Affects Prosecutors
Nathan Evershed, a former Salt Lake County deputy district attorney, spent eleven years working in Gill’s office, reviewed both cases and spoke on camera with 2News Investigates for this report. He has prosecuted several of Utah’s high-profile cases. He is now a criminal defense attorney. He said the justification law has had an impact on the screening of cases for criminal charges by prosecutors.
“A justification hearing causes the prosecutors to rethink their case — that is for sure. Because they know that they will have to answer to the evidence that they have presented much sooner than a jury trial in the court hearing,” Evershed said.
He had this to say about the justification law itself: “The justification hearing law is forcing prosecutors to really evaluate their cases and to make sure that they can get through a justification hearing by clear and convincing evidence.”
He further said, “What is needed for a justification hearing and at the end of the day what is needed for trial is evidence. The prosecution needs evidence in order to disprove self-defense.”
Additionally, he said, “There’s two bites at the apple: the defendant has to assert self-defense claims, so does it cause a greater onus on the prosecutors to make sure that they can disprove self-defense — absolutely. That part of the law I think has come to fruition in terms of what the prosecutors are doing. They’re analyzing cases much more thoroughly for self-defense issues, and one big reason that they do that is under our system of law — the defendant doesn’t have to prove anything.”
Evershed said evidence is of the utmost importance. “It really comes down to the evidence, and so now prosecutors are in a place where they have to really strategically and meticulously look at the evidence and see if they can get through a justification hearing in order to get to a jury trial.”
And as a result, he told 2News Investigates, “Less cases are probably being filed because of that.”
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Utah
Utah Celtic boys wrap up unprecedented run of 4 straight national tournament titles at MLS NEXT Cup – KSL Sports
HERRIMAN — Patrick Stevenson remains uncommitted for his college soccer career, but he may want to consider signing with Real Monarchs after his latest performance at Zions Bank Stadium.
Stevenson notched a brace as Celtic scored five second-half goals in a 5-0 win over St. Louis Developmental Academy in the championship match of the MLS NEXT Cup U19 boys’ academy division on home soil.
So about that Monarchs plan?
“If that ever happened, of course I would. That’s the dream,” said a sheepish Stevenson, who will leave for missionary service for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Argentina this summer.”
A backup plan of Division I college soccer for the former Utah Valley commit isn’t bad, either.
Neither is a national title
“It’s so surreal,” said Brooks Barker, the Georgetown commitment who was named tournament MVP. “Being able to play with these boys year after year is special. We’ve really built a family here, and accomplishing anything your family is amazing. You’ll remember it forever — but national championships were last a lifetime.”
After a scoreless first half, Celtic started to roll. Air Force commit Ben Bradley opened the scoring off the club’s sixth corner kick of the match, and Brooks Barker doubled the advantage moments later.
“That’s up there with one of my favorite goals of my career,” Barker said. “Everyone dreams of scoring a bicycle kick. It wasn’t perfectly clean, but for my last club goal ever — I’m going to remember it for a long time.”
But the green-and-white stripes weren’t done.
Corbin Gardner added a third off the boot of the Salt Lake Community College commit in the 73rd minute, and Stevenson found the back of the net less than six minutes later before finishing off his brace in stoppage time.
“All the boys are amazing,” said Stevenson, who joined Celtic a year ago after playing up a division with LaRoca FC most of his life. “We all play as a family, leave no regrets, and everybody just plays together.
“Right when I came in, they were so welcoming,” he added. “From the very first training, I felt part of the team.”
It’s about more than soccer, too, Barker added.
“It’s less of a team, and more of a family,” he said. “We’re all there for each other in all of our moments: mission calls, celebrating each other, college commitments. We all play as a family, and it’s easier to play with guys who feel like brothers than just teammates.”
He also credited Celtic 07-08 coach Matt Bradley, who led the club the whole way.
“To be able to play with guys that you love with a great coach,” Barker said, “it makes all the difference.”
Utah
A Utah Utes coach was ‘too negative’ with his players. Here’s how he’s changing his approach now.
Gavin Petersen led the Utes to a 19-12 record, just barely missing out on the NCAA Tournament last season.
(Trent Nelson | The Salt Lake Tribune) Utah women’s basketball coach Gavin Petersen says he’s had to change his approach to coaching since taking over for Lynne Roberts.
Utah
From small-town Utah to NYC: Accomplished hairstylist reflects on journey to upscale SoHo salon
NEW YORK — When Reagan Baker-Jaillet was a teenager, she moved from small-town Tennessee to small-town Utah. Now she’s rolling out the red carpet for the grand opening of her salon in what some may call the biggest city of them all — New York City.
Baker-Jaillet is the owner of House of Reagan in SoHo, a neighborhood in Lower Manhattan. Her salon is stationed in a 120-year-old loft space that she transformed into a “whimsical, funky and upscale” establishment where she specializes in cutting and styling. Her niche aesthetic is “bedroom hair,” which she is in the process of trademarking.
Prior to opening her salon, she styled hair and modeled at New York Fashion Week, worked on projects for Netflix, Comedy Central, and “Saturday Night Live.” She’s been featured in several magazines, including Rolling Stone, Cosmopolitan and Vogue. She was also cast on an HBO dating show in 2023. Her transformation over the years, she said, can be attributed to learning at a young age how to reinvent herself.
“I’m the fifth out of six children in my family, and the youngest daughter,” Baker-Jaillet told KSL. “We moved from East Tennessee to Cedar City when I was in the middle of eighth grade. Before moving to Utah, we were all homeschooled, so Cedar City was really my introduction to being around kids my age and socializing daily. It was jarringly intimidating at first, but I learned to embrace the challenge of being a fish out of water.
“Most of the kids didn’t even know I hadn’t attended traditional school up until that point, or how deathly shy and socially inexperienced I was,” she continued. “By high school, I had mostly adapted and got involved in sports, after-school clubs, cheerleading, and was even voted into prom/homecoming court. I learned then how much I love the challenge of reinvention.”
The draw to glamour also came at a young age, as she watched her mom and older sisters put on makeup. She said that when she moved to Cedar City, she noticed that many of the girls in her class were “fearless” in the way they presented themselves, and she felt inspired.
“Growing up, I always loved watching my mom and sisters get ready and then going through their products when they weren’t home,” she said. “I practiced using their hot rollers and potions on myself and immediately noticed how elevated and great it made me feel. When I got to Utah, the girls were over-the-top and fearless with the way they did their hair, nails and makeup. I loved it.”
After high school, Baker-Jaillet attended Evan’s Hairstyling College in Cedar City and discovered that she not only loved cosmetology but also the diverse people she met on the job. This caused her to want to see more people and more of the world. To do that, she took a job as a nanny in New York and used that as a springboard to explore her new world.
“Cosmetology offered everything I loved — access to interesting conversations with a wide variety of people all day, and lots and lots of glamour,” she said. “I have to say, it was a fabulous choice.
“When I moved to the city in 2005, I was in awe of the surprises and thrills I came across at every corner,” she added. “Whether it was seeing an elderly person covered head to toe in tattoos, walking down the street, or wandering into some random store and finding an eccentric shop owner selling completely unrelated items, there was so much edge and backstory wherever you went.”
As she immersed herself in her new environment, with a set of hair-styling skills she had no way to capitalize on, she drew on another love that came naturally — writing. In the new age of blogging, she launched Hairdresser on Fire, which she said was a “huge part” of her career journey.
“I was a junior stylist with no clients yet, and as an early beauty blogger, I was able to combine my love of writing with what I was building day-to-day in the salon,” she said. “It catapulted my credibility as a beauty expert and helped me grow my clientele significantly. There are so many talented artists out there; writing about beauty set me apart.”
Staying true to who she is at the moment has allowed Baker-Jaillet the chance to create new versions of herself and the spaces to match. House of Reagan, she said, is very representative of who she is today.
“Out of all my creative endeavors, building this space has been the most challenging, but the most rewarding of all,” she said. “I’ve dreamt it up, creative-directed, and paid for almost all of it entirely by myself.
“This project has conditioned my mind to think beyond one-hour haircut increments and toward the bigger picture. I’m not always sure of what the end goal is, but I’m brainstorming and dreaming about what’s next all the time, and having a physical space allows me to jump on and execute those ideas right away.”
As a big-city girl with small-town roots, she is grateful for a family that has allowed for autonomy — with a little room for sibling teasing, of course.
“Being on the younger end of six children gave me a lot of independence and confidence to figure things out on my own,” she said. “I’m naturally adventurous and a big risk taker, which I think has been funny for my family to understand at times. When I shared the news that I was cast in a show on HBO, my eldest sibling pleaded that I pretend to be an only child. That big family style of teasing will put hair on your chest and prepare you for the real world like nothing else.”
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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