After a work session on the 2019-20 budget Wednesday evening, the Tooele City Council trimmed the budget and reduced the proposed certified tax rate ahead of a decisive meeting next week. 

Following a lengthy discussion on budget line items, planning for future equipment and taxpayer impact, a straw poll of the City Council settled at a 6% increase over the state’s certified tax rate of .003024. In total, the City Council cut $176,888 from the budget, including the elimination of a grant writer position, cuts to the operation and maintenance line item in the streets budget and the removal of an annual judgment payment following the settlement with the former Aposhian Sod Farm. 

At the .003213 tax rate now proposed by the City Council, a property owner with a $280,000 home would pay $495 in city property taxes, compared to $466 under the certified tax rate. The previously proposed tax rate of .003334 would result in property taxes for the same homeowner of $513. 

A certified tax rate 6% greater than the certified tax rate would create a $192,330 deficit to the tentative budget, which is based around a .003334 tax rate, which is the same as last year. The gap between the proposed cuts and the property tax revenue would be made up by a transfer from the City’s general fund balance, City Councilman Dave McCall suggested. 

City departments only spent about 95% of their budget in the past year, according to Tooele City Mayor Debbie Winn. McCall said the City should continue to look for cuts wherever possible. 

“I don’t want us to get to where we were before,” McCall said. “I don’t. I’m not a pro-tax guy … but if we don’t do something and keep our head above water to where we’re moving in the right direction, we’re going to find ourselves back here with another 80, 90 or 115 percent tax increase. And no one wants that.”

City Councilman Brad Pratt called some of the budget cuts to reach 6% as “easy to make” and said they wouldn’t be detrimental to the City’s goals. 

“I think that we can operate on that and continue to accomplish all of the things that we want to accomplish,” Pratt said. “I really do.”

For City Councilman Scott Wardle, the expanded spending without a full future plan for equipment replacement and other needs was a concern. 

“I’m a little troubled, I’m not going to lie,” Wardle said. “We’re growing this government very fast and I know it’s because we’re behind. But I have trouble growing government when I don’t have plans in front of me and we’re just throwing money at a problem.” 

Winn said she had trimmed the budget working with department heads prior to presenting it to the City Council. She said the budget was created under the agreement with the City Council to hold the tax rate from the previous year budget and cautioned against making too many cuts. 

“We’re going to get back in the situation that we have been in,” Winn said. 

A final decision on the City’s 2019-20 budget is expected at the City Council’s Aug. 21 meeting at 7 p.m. in the Council Chambers at Tooele City Hall.

Six candidates remain in the running for three seats on the Tooele City Council, while two candidates remain in a pair of races for seats on the Stansbury Service Agency board. 

Ed Hansen, Justin Brady and incumbent Dave McCall were the top three vote getters in Tuesday’s primary election for the Tooele City Council with 1,672, 1,605 and 1,561 votes, respectively. The next three candidates were Jon Gossett (1,153), Tony Graf (993) and Wayne Anderton (958). 

The two candidates missing the cut for the municipal election this November were Ryan Peacock, with 663 votes and Jeff Saunders, with 652 votes. 

In the Stansbury Greenbelt Service District board opening, Michael Griffeth led the way with 599 votes, or 60% of the total votes cast. Stephen Nelson received 215 votes to claim the final spot in the municipal election, while Kasey Nobles fell short with 183 votes. 

The Stansbury Recreation Special Service District board race saw Randall Hinton lead the way with 340 votes, followed by Jacob Zollinger with 242 and Devon Hansen with 241. Brian Endicott finished fourth with 171 votes. 

A total of 9,257 votes were cast in the Tooele City Council primary, while 997 votes were cast in the Stansbury Greenbelt Service District primary and 994 in the Stansbury Recreation Special Service District primary. 

A total of 4,573 ballots were cast in the three races, with Tooele City residents able to vote for three City Council candidates, according to the Tooele County Clerk’s office. Of the ballots cast, seven were blank. 

Only 22.5% of the 20,298 eligible registered voters actually voted in Tuesday’s primary election, according to unofficial results provided by the County Clerk’s office. 

In addition to the three races in Tuesday’s primary, there are 24 positions up for grabs in this November’s municipal election. 

Those races include four seats on the Grantsville City Council, including a position with a two-year term and another three with four-year terms. The Rush Valley Town Council has two positions to fill, while the Lake Point Improvement District board has two positions open, but a single candidate.

The North Tooele Fire District will fill three board positions and the Stansbury Park Improvement District board has one opening. Stockton residents will elect a mayor and two councilmembers, while the Vernon Town Council has four positions open, including a pair of two-year and a pair of four-year positions. 

The Wendover City Council has five openings, including two two-year positions and three four-year positions.

With Tooele County students back to school and the length of days waning, Lake Point Days will keep the summer feeling around for at least another weekend.  

The festivities kick off on Friday at 6 p.m., with a chili cookoff, as well as a raffle and silent auction. The center for all the activities on Friday and Saturday will be Lake Point Park, located behind The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints building at the intersection of Center Street and Canyon Road. 

There will be activities such as cornhole and super-sized games for kids at 7:30 p.m. and live music from local band Cactus Cola. At 8:30 p.m., attendees will be treated to a movie in the park, “How to Train Your Dragon.” 

A new event to Lake Point Days will come after darkness has fallen, with a Neon Nite 5K run and walk, scheduled to begin around 9:30 p.m. Runners and walkers can register at lakepointcommunity.com/events and pay the $15 race fee, which includes a T-shirt.

Saturday’s activities kick off with the annual parade down Center Street, which begins at 9 a.m. on Mountain View Road at the intersection with Sunset Road. The route travels south before ending at Lake Point Park. 

Following the parade will be a flag ceremony and the national anthem at 9:45 a.m., with a horse show by the Rock’n Riders. 

Between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m., there will be a classic car show, face painting, bingo, horse rides, a barrel train and more. There are $3 individual tickets and $15 family wrist bands for outdoor laser tag and the barrel and bounce house slides. 

From 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., lunch will be available with $4 hot dog meals and $5 hamburger meals. Throughout the day, there will be more than 25 vendors selling their wares to attendees. 

The weekend activities finish with a country dance at the park, which runs from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. 

The Grantsville City Department of Public Works building at the intersection of Main and Cooley streets was damaged in a fire on Aug. 11, according to city officials. 

Firefighters with Grantsville City Volunteer Fire Department were dispatched on a smoke investigation, according to Grantsville City Fire Chief Rob Critchlow, at around 8 p.m. When crews arrived on scene, smoke was coming out of the DPW building and a fire was found in the kitchen area. 

Everything inside the building was ruled a total loss, according to Grantsville City Public Works director James Waltz. The City is working with insurance adjusters and investigators to determine the cause of the blaze and if the building is salvageable or not. 

An agenda item to discuss the fire in the public works building is on the agenda for the Grantsville City Council meeting on Wednesday at 7 p.m. at Grantsville City Hall. 

Correspondent Mark Watson contributed to this story.

A fire caused by an unattended burn barrel burned two homes and an outbuilding last Thursday in Gold Hill, according to fire officials. 

The fire in the remote community northeast of Ibapah was first reported at 3:20 p.m. on Aug. 15 at 7121 N. Main St., according to Tooele County Fire Warden Daniel Walton. The blaze grew to 5.5 acres on private land before it was ruled contained at 8:15 p.m. 

While the fire was active, it damaged a permanent residence, a seasonal residence, two historic buildings and an outbuilding, according to Walton. One person was displaced as a result of the fire. 

Resources from the Wendover City and Ibapah fire departments, along with engines from the Bureau of Land Management and U.S. Forest Service responded to the fire. Also on scene were a helicopter and two water tenders from BLM, an air supervision platform, a state of Utah fire engine, a fire investigator and a Tooele County Sheriff’s deputy. 

The cause of the fire was determined to be an unattended burn barrel and the responsible party was cited for reckless burning with no burn permit, according to Walton. The estimated fire suppression costs were $20,000, while the cost of damaged infrastructure was unavailable at press time Tuesday morning. 

A Utah Department of Transportation representative spoke with members of the Tooele County Council of Governments, detailing future construction projects and studies during its meeting last Thursday. 

Grant Farnsworth, UDOT Region 2 planning manager, handed out an informational sheet containing construction projects and performance measures for the county at the COG meeting. He said the sheet has also made the rounds throughout the state, including at the state Capitol. 

Funded projects on the horizon include completion of the Black Rock and state Route 36 overpass bridges, the creation of a westbound auxiliary lane on Interstate 80 and the Mid-Valley Highway. 

The $45 million bridge replacement plan includes the reconstruction of two railroad overpass bridges at Black Rock and the highway overpass bridge at Exit 99. The project, which has been underway since early 2018, also includes the creation of a third southbound lane on SR-36 from Hardy Road to Sunset Road. 

The $3 million I-80 westbound auxiliary lane will run from the state Route 201 ramp to the SR-36 interchange, which will improve weaving from vehicles getting onto the interstate, according to UDOT. The project is funded and in the design phase, with construction set to begin in 2020. 

The Mid-Valley Highway, designated state Route 179, will connect from I-80 to state Route 138 near Sheep Lane. The $75 million project was recently put out to bid and a 425-day contract was awarded to Ames Construction of West Valley City, according to Tooele County Commissioner Tom Tripp. 

If all goes as planned, the first phase of the highway will be completed by early December 2020, Tripp said. UDOT expects the new highway will shift 15-20% of the traffic away from SR-36 while creating a nearby alternate route to I-80 if there is a closure on SR-36. 

In addition to the three announced projects, there is another $33.5 million slated to be spent to repave state Routes 36, 73, 138 and 112 between 2019 and 2021. Farnsworth said the repaving of SR-138 will occur as two projects, with one encompassing the route between I-80 and Grantsville and the other between Grantsville and SR-36. 

Two unfunded projects were also mentioned at the COG meeting, including an extension from SR-201 to SR-36 and an I-80 eastbound auxiliary lane. 

The SR-201 extension is earmarked for $200 million, though Farnsworth clarified the amount is a placeholder with the project still in the conceptual phase. The extension would provide an alternate route for I-80 commuters if there were closures due to a crash. 

Tooele County Commissioner Shawn Milne said the county has studied the possibility of an extension and favors an extension from SR-201 to a new road, the Oquirrh Expressway, to avoid the congestion at the Saddleback Boulevard intersection. The Oquirrh Expressway would run along the east bench of the Oquirrh Mountains and connect to Bates Canyon Road.

The $4 million I-80 eastbound auxiliary lane would connect from SR-36 to SR-201. Farnsworth said funding for the auxiliary lane would be easier to acquire than that for the SR-201 extension. 

“As you get with the smaller amounts, we’re able to find other pots of money, rather than just the transportation investment fund,” he said. 

A pair of studies will also be conducted in the near future to better understand some of the transportation issues in Tooele County. 

The Tooele Transit Study will start next month, which is expected to take a look at short-term and long-term solutions for serving Tooele County through public transit. 

Another study, the Northeast Tooele County Area Study, is expected to begin in a few months, through a partnership with Tooele County, Tooele City, Grantsville City, Utah Transit Authority and Wasatch Front Regional Council. The intent of the study is to look at solutions to mobility challenges in the county over the long- and short-term. 

The performance measures provided by Farnsworth included a look at daily traffic by the number of vehicles on I-80, which has increased 6% over the last six years. Utah is experiencing yearly traffic increases of 4-10% in high growth areas, according to UDOT. 

Two community members spoke during the COG meeting. Chad Whitehead said he was frustrated by the commute he had to make to his former job in Draper, which could last two hours due to traffic on I-80 and Interstate 15. He said the COG meeting was a good learning experience for what the government is trying to do, but he’d like to see something done quicker. 

Ruth Jones, a Tooele resident, also spoke and expressed similar frustrations with the length of commutes due to traffic. 

A Tooele couple made their initial appearances in 3rd District Court on Tuesday after they were allegedly found in possession of a stolen camping trailer earlier this month. 

Daniel Christop Frieze, 34, is charged with second-degree felony receive or transfer a stolen vehicle, second-degree felony altered vehicle ID number and third-degree felony false evidence of title and registration. Ashley Marie Winslow, 31, is also charged with second-degree felony receive or transfer of a stolen vehicle, as well as third-degree felony unlawful acquisition, possession or transfer of a financial card and misdemeanor possession of another’s identity documents. 

A Tooele City police officer was dispatched to the area of 810 North and 630 West on report of a 911 hangup on Aug. 8 at 6:19 p.m., according to the probable cause statement. Once on scene, the officer was waved down by a man, identified as Frieze, who said he and his wife, identified as Winslow, were having a domestic dispute. 

Frieze provided the officer with a debit card and social security card belonging to someone other than Winslow, which he said she had stolen, the probable cause statement said. He said they were arguing because the cards were stolen from a family member while Winslow was in Idaho, which were confirmed stolen by the Nampa Police Department. 

While interviewing Winslow, she told the police officer Frieze had stolen the cards and the camping trailer they were staying in was stolen, the statement said.

The officer was able to locate the National Crime Information Center listing for the trailer, the probable cause statement said. Winslow advised she had witnessed Frieze paint over the trailer to cover the decals and identifying information; the officer observed the trailer had been painted over and the vehicle identification number was removed. 

The agency which reported the trailer stolen provided photos to the victim, who confirmed identifying features and damage of the trailer, according to the probable cause statement. 

On Tuesday, Winslow was appointed counsel and she was assigned no bail allowed, while Frieze, who was not in custody, was also appointed counsel. Frieze is scheduled back in court on Oct. 1 at 1:30 p.m. before 3rd District Court Judge Matthew Bates, while Winslow is scheduled to return on Sept. 3 at 9 a.m.

A Tooele man who allegedly threatened a family with a metal bat and used racial slurs pleaded guilty to lesser charges in 3rd District Court on Tuesday. 

Roland Elvis Hicks, 43, was charged with three counts of third-degree felony aggravated assault and a misdemeanor count of intoxication. At Tuesday’s court hearing, Hicks pleaded guilty to three counts of misdemeanor aggravated assault, with the misdemeanor intoxication count dismissed. 

Hicks was ordered released from the Tooele County Detention Center at his hearing on Tuesday, provided he report to Adult Probation and Parole within 24 hours and get a substance abuse assessment and start treatment within 48 hours.

The case is set for sentencing on Oct. 8 at 1:30 p.m. before 3rd District Court Judge Matthew Bates. 

The charges against Hicks stem from an Aug. 1 incident in which the victim flagged down an officer in the area of 780 N. 100 West, Tooele, at 9:52 p.m., claiming a man had threatened him and his family with a bat, according to a probable cause statement. The responding officer observed a man, later identified as Hicks, standing with a metal bat in his hands. 

The officer observed Hicks walking away and “heard the distinct sound” of a bat hitting the street, the statement said. After the officer observed Hicks throw the bat under a parked vehicle on 100 West, Hicks continued to walk north away from the area before stopping at the command of police.

When the officer made contact with Hicks, they observed he smelled strongly of alcohol and was slurring his speech and had a glossy appearance in his eyes, according to the probable cause statement. Hicks later told officers he had drank four malt liquor beverages. 

The male victim said he didn’t know who Hicks was, and Hicks had approached them yelling and saying he would fight them, the statement said. He said Hicks referred to them with a racial slur and continued yelling at the family. 

The two female victims, an adult and a juvenile, said Hicks kept hitting things with the bat and yelling at the group, according to the statement. 

Hicks was placed under arrest at 10:13 p.m. and transported to the county jail, where he recorded a .161 blood alcohol content on a portable breath test. 

A new housing option will be made available to Tooele City residents after the Tooele City Council approved an ordinance amending city code to allow for accessory dwelling units at its meeting Wednesday night. 

The city code defines accessory dwelling units as “a subordinate dwelling with its own eating, sleeping, and sanitation facilities” that is either located inside a primary residence, or in an attached or detached dwelling unit. Examples include basement apartments, garage apartments, carriage houses or tiny homes.

Tooele City Attorney Roger Baker said the state is experiencing a deficit of about 50,000 homes, representing the gap between available housing units and families. Baker introduced the council to the possibility of accessory dwelling units in March, but has worked on the ordinance for 11 months. 

The ordinance before the City Council included 20 examples of benefits to the secondary units, including lower priced housing for students, young families, retirees and others, increased property value, reducing single-family yard irrigation and venting pressure to create new, large apartment complexes. 

“This policy will provide new income streams to Tooele homeowners who take advantage of it,” Baker said. “It will allow Tooele residents to age in place, or in other words, to remain on their properties through various life stages, from singles and new families to retirees.” 

The new section of code puts restrictions on accessory dwelling units, such as minimum lot size, size of the unit and parking. 

The minimum lot size for an attached or detached accessory dwelling unit is 8,500 square feet and 7,000 square feet for an internal unit. The units are only permitted on residential lots zoned to R1-7 or lower densities; the R1-7 zone permits 7,000-square-foot lots. 

Internal accessory dwelling units have a minimum size of 400 square feet, but cannot exceed the square footage of the foundation of the primary dwelling. Attached units also have a minimum size of 400 square feet, but can’t be larger than 800 square feet on one story, with a maximum size of 1,200 square feet. 

For detached accessory dwelling units, the minimum size is 800 square feet, with a maximum of 1,200 square feet. 

Each accessory dwelling unit is required to have one additional on-site parking stall for each bedroom in the unit. No accessory dwelling unit can exceed two bedrooms. 

No residents spoke during a public hearing on the accessory dwelling unit ordinance at Wednesday’s City Council meeting. 

The City Council unanimously approved the accessory dwelling unit ordinance on a motion from City Councilman Brad Pratt, seconded by City Councilwoman Melodi Gochis. 

The Tooele City Council approved a final budget for fiscal year 2019-20 during its meeting Wednesday night, which features a 6% increase over the certified tax rate. 

The City’s $23 million general fund budget was adjusted during a special budget meeting last Wednesday, in which enough was trimmed to reduce the proposed increase to the certified property tax rate from 10.25% to 6%. The final tax rate of .0033205 would generate $5.1 million in revenue, up from the $4.8 million if the City used the certified tax rate of .0033024.

At the adopted .003205 tax rate, a property owner with a $280,000 home would pay $494 in city property taxes, compared to $466 under the certified tax rate. The previously proposed tax rate of .003334 would result in property taxes for the same homeowner of $513. 

Following an 82% tax increase last year, Mayor Debbie Winn and the City Council pledged to hold the same tax rate from the previous year. The City Council decided to review the budget again, however, when the previous tax rate was 10.25% higher than the certified tax rate this year. 

To reduce the property tax rate increase to 6%, the City Council eliminated a grant writer position, made cuts to the operation and maintenance line in the streets budget and removed an annual judgment payment following the settlement with the former Aposhian Sod Farm. 

With the final public hearing required by the Truth in Taxation process held at the Aug. 7 meeting, no public comments were made on the budget at Wednesday’s meeting. 

In a brief presentation to the City Council, City Finance Director Glen Caldwell called the final iteration a good budget, laying out the revenue generated and certified tax rate for adoption. 

The final budget passed unanimously on a motion from City Councilman Scott Wardle, seconded by City Councilman Brad Pratt. The certified tax rate also passed unanimously, on a motion from City Councilman Dave McCall, seconded by City Councilwoman Melodi Gochis.

An Erda man is facing criminal charges in 3rd District Court after he allegedly stole water skiing equipment earlier this month.

Quenten Lee Christensen, 50, is charged with one count of second-degree and two counts of third-degree felony possession of a dangerous weapon by a restricted person, as well as third-degree felony burglary and misdemeanor counts of theft and criminal mischief. 

Tooele County Sheriff’s deputies were dispatched to a property on Cochrane Lane regarding a theft on Aug. 17, according to a probable cause statement. The property owner reported when he arrived, he noticed an air compressor, generator and some motor oil were missing from the property. 

The owner also said multiple pieces of water-skiing and skiing equipment were stolen from inside a boat, the statement said. Deputies discovered ATV tire tracks, as well as narrower tire tracks, which indicated a trailer was being pulled behind it. 

After following the tracks through a field, deputies located the place where the suspect had cut a fence to gain entrance to the field, according to the statement. While searching the area, deputies observed a red ATV and trailer from Erda Way at an address belonging to Christensen, which they believed matched the description of the tire marks observed at the scene of the theft.

A search warrant was later obtained and performed by law enforcement at Christensen’s residence on Erda Way, the statement said. During the search, water skiing and snowboarding equipment were located, which the victim confirmed matched the items stolen from the boat. 

While deputies continued to search for stolen items, they found two large Bowie knives and a loaded sawed-off shotgun inside the home, according to the probable cause statement. Since Christensen is a convicted felon, he is not allowed to be in possession of a dangerous weapon or firearm. 

Christensen was scheduled to make his initial appearance in 3rd District Court on Monday, but had bailed out of jail and was not present for the hearing. His initial appearance is now scheduled for Sept. 24 at 1:30 p.m. before Judge Matthew Bates. 

The Tooele City Council has discussed an amendment to the city code that would expand the number of children served at home day cares in the city. 

City staff have been made aware there’s a shortage of properly licensed day cares in the city, according to City Planner Andrew Aagard. 

“This leads to a concern about where all the other kids are being put into day care,” Aagard said. “If they’re being put into unlicensed day cares where they may be some unsafe conditions and so forth.”

Mayor Debbie Winn said concerns about the number of day care providers were brought to her by a Stansbury Park provider. She said some kids are going to day care providers that are not licensed by the state and the city is looking into ways to alleviate the shortage to ensure children’s safety.

“It’s a protection for our children,” Winn said. “Changing this ordinance will still comply with Utah State Law.”

City code previously allowed up to 16 children in a home-based day care, but was amended to eight, Aagard said. The proposed ordinance would restore the maximum number of children to 16, changing the definition of a commercial day care to be more than 16 children, while eliminating the residential designation. 

“The reason why we want to change the commercial designation is if home-based day cares could have 16 children, anything more than that should be in a commercial location because you’re really getting into some traffic issues,” Aagard said. 

There is currently a daycare in the city that operates with 16 children, with no issues or complaints the city is aware of, according to Aagard. It also shows it can be done in a neighborhood without traffic problems, he said. 

Another change to the code would be to permit a non-resident employee for day cares, which is currently prohibited for home-based businesses. The non-resident employee restriction would remain in place for other home-based businesses.

Any home-based day care with less than eight children would be a permitted use, but those with between eight and 16 would require a conditional use permit approved by the planning commission. The requirements would also include a traffic plan, adequate parking and other considerations. 

The total of 16 children would include any children of the licensee or employee if they’re under the care of their parents, according to Aagard. 

“We feel that that would be a nice solution to the lack of licensed and appropriate day cares in Tooele City,” Aagard said. “It’d give day care providers a little more opportunity to have more of a day care at their home.”

City Councilman Dave McCall asked about square footage requirements for the homes if 16 children were permitted and Aagard said city staff would look into it. 

The proposed ordinance will now go to the City’s planning commission for review and recommendation. 

The Tooele City Police Department will receive a federal grant to purchase equipment to better train officers from local law enforcement agencies in appropriate use of force and de-escalation techniques. 

The Edward Byrne Justice Assistance Grant, offered through the U.S. Department of Justice, is for $17,899. Tooele City Police Chief Ron Kirby said the grant will be used to purchase a firearms simulation system and simulation ammunition. 

The Digital Firearms Training Simulator, or DART, system uses a projector and electronic pistols to create a firearm training simulator that is portable and can be set up in any room. Officers will be presented with a scenario in which they have to respond to in real time with the electronic firearm, Kirby said. 

“This allows them to differentiate situations where they should and should not use deadly force,” he said. 

Simunition will also be purchased with the grant money, which is simulated rounds fired from real guns, which are non-lethal but painful and marking, according to Kirby. It’s a training tool that allows officers the ability to train in simulated live fire situations. 

“It includes the sense of adrenaline and everything that goes with a deadly force situation,” Kirby said. 

While both focus on firearms training, Kirby said the training tools are intended to be more than an opportunity for officers to practice using their guns. The national debate on law enforcement and use of deadly force is something the police department is aware of, he said.

“This is part of our overall effort to, wherever possible, reduce uses of force, particularly deadly force,” Kirby said.

The state of California passed legislation last week that permits officers to use deadly force only when necessary. The U.S. Supreme Court has set the standard for use of deadly force on an objective reasonableness standard, Kirby said.

“That’s a pretty fine line, of is it reasonable to use force, or is it necessary to use force,” he said. “That’s a very fine line. Very difficult for officers to make these legalistic determinations in the heat of the moment.”

Training allows the officers to help with a live training setting to use the least amount of force given the circumstances presented to them, Kirby said. He said the department views use of force as something used to minimize or prevent harm to officers, citizens and suspects. 

Officers are trained annually in de-escalation techniques and defensive tactics, as well as interacting with citizens suffering with mental illness, Kirby said. The department also has access to non-lethal means of force like pepper spray, stun guns, bean bag rounds and batons. 

The training equipment will be shared with the Tooele County Sheriff’s Office per the existing interlocal agreement, but the sheriff’s office will not receive any of the grant funds. 

A Heber City man charged in the alleged rape of a Tooele teen made his initial appearance in 3rd District Court on Monday. 

Ruben Armando Flores, 20, is charged with two counts of first-degree felony rape and one count of forcible sodomy. 

A Tooele City police officer was dispatched to an area hospital in regard to a rape on Aug. 15, according to a probable cause statement. The responding officer spoke with the 17-year-old victim, who said she met Flores on Facebook and agreed to go on a date with him.

The victim said Flores picked her up from her home to go to a nearby park where they agreed they could talk and get to know each other, the statement said. When they reached a nearby power maintenance building, the victim said Flores told her to face the wall, then pulled down her pants and underwear and raped her. 

The victim said she told Flores she didn’t want to have sex and he said, “We will see about that,” the probable cause statement said. She said she was in shock and did not fight Flores off. 

Afterward, the victim said she was afraid of Flores and went with him to eat dinner, the statement said. The victim said after dinner, they drove to a gate near a canyon and Flores parked the vehicle and asked her to give him oral sex, which she told him she didn’t want to do. 

Flores then forced her to give him oral sex and then he raped her again, the victim told police, according to the probable cause statement. 

On Aug. 19, Tooele City police interviewed Flores and he told investigators the victim had told him she didn’t want to have sex prior to the alleged rape and he admitted to pulling down her pants and underwear. He said the rest of what happened was consensual. 

The responding officer did a criminal history search on Flores on Aug. 21 and found Flores had been convicted of rape in 2016, when he would have been 17 or 18 years old. 

During his initial appearance in court on Monday, bail was set at $250,000 for Flores, who hired a private attorney. He was ordered to have no contact with the victim. 

Flores is scheduled to return to 3rd District Court on Sept. 10 at 9 a.m. before Judge Matthew Bates for a scheduling conference and bail hearing.

Anyone looking for a final taste of summer can come to Tooele City’s Aquatic Center Park for a free musical festival on Labor Day. 

The family-friendly event is now in its third year, according to Tooele Arts Council director Holly Tippetts. Three local bands will perform and there will be food trucks for the festival, which kicks off at 5 p.m. 

While Tooele City’s Fridays on Vine concert series wrapped up on Aug. 16, it served as the inspiration for the Arts Council’s Labor Day Music Festival, Tippetts said. 

“Everyone loves Fridays on Vine, so we thought, ‘Let’s do something for Labor Day,’” she said. 

The Superintendents of Rock, featuring Tooele County School District Superintendent Dr. Scott Rogers, will perform first at the festival, from 5 p.m. to 5:45 p.m. In addition to Rogers, the band includes Steve Carlsen, superintendent of Box Elder School District; Kodey Hughes, superintendent of Tintic School District; and Dr. Scott Crane, executive director of the Southeast Service Center. 

Following the Superintendents of Rock performance, local balloon artist the Balloonatic will take the stage during the intermission. 

After the Balloonatic wraps up her act, Bent Fender will perform next from 6:15 p.m. to 7 p.m. The Utah band specializes in ‘60s and ‘70s rock and roll, with Rick Blake and Randy Heyborne on guitar and vocals, Vince Vargas on bass and vocals, Dave Neria on drums and Ben Blake on keyboard and vocals. 

There will be a short intermission, featuring an encore performance by the Balloonatic, then Party Rock Project will hit the Aquatic Center Park stage at 7:30 p.m. for an hour-long performance. The Wasatch Front-based group, which features Nate Davis on acoustic guitar, Bre Walsh on vocals and Quinn Dietien on keyboard and vocals, plays a mix of music in interactive performances. 

With so much entertainment set for the festival, attendees are likely to work up an appetite and Tippetts said there should be several food trucks at the music festival, including Black Knight’s Bar Be Que. 

Pratt Aquatic Center Park is located at 55 N. 200 West. Attendees are encouraged to bring a blanket or lawn chair.

A Grantsville man facing a total of 24 felony charges related to the sexual abuse of children harmed himself in the Tooele County Detention Center, but was treated and returned to custody, according to the Tooele County Sheriff’s Office. 

Mark A. Swan, 48, used a razor to self-mutilate on Sunday, according to Tooele County Sheriff Lt. Ray Clinton. He was transported to the hospital for treatment and returned to the Tooele County jail on Monday. 

Patient privacy protections under the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) mean the sheriff’s office cannot release details on the nature or extent of the injuries Swan suffered, Clinton said. 

Swan appeared in 3rd District Court on Tuesday for a scheduling conference in both cases, which were continued at the request of his counsel for settlement negotiations. If there is no resolution at the next hearing, the case will be set for a preliminary hearing, according to court records. 

Swan is charged with four counts of first-degree felony sodomy on a child, four counts of first-degree felony object rape of a child, two counts of first-degree felony aggravated kidnapping, and three counts of third-degree felony attempted sex abuse of a child in one case filed July 22.

In a second case, filed July 26, Swan is charged with two counts of first-degree felony rape of a child, one count of first-degree felony object rape of a child, three counts of first-degree felony sodomy of a child, two counts of aggravated sexual abuse of a child, and three counts of second-degree felony sex abuse of a child. 

Swan was arrested on July 19 after a parent of three children reported a man in the neighborhood had “inappropriately touched their children,” according to a probable cause statement from Grantsville City police. During an interview with investigators, the alleged victims, aged 7 to 13 years old, identified Swan as the perpetrator. 

In the second case, a child under the age of 14 told investigators she had been consistently sexually abused for the last two years by Swan, according to the probable cause statement. The victim indicated the abuse happened more times than they could recount but went into detail on several of the instances. 

Another victim, also under the age of 14, was interviewed by investigators and indicated Swan touched them inappropriately over their clothing on three of the five times they visited his house. 

Swan is scheduled to return to 3rd District Court for scheduling conferences in both cases on Sept. 10 at 9 a.m. before Judge Matthew Bates.

A Taylorsville woman has been charged with a pair of felonies in 3rd District Court after she was allegedly found in possession of heroin by Stockton police.

Riley Catherine Nicholson, 23, is charged with two counts of second-degree felony possession with intent to distribute a Class C substance. 

A Stockton police officer responded to the area of milepost 49 on state Route 36 on a report of a suspicious vehicle at 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday, according to a probable cause statement. When the officer arrived and located the vehicle, it was unoccupied. 

The officer recognized the vehicle from earlier in the day, with a female driver, the statement said. When the officer searched the area, they located the suspect, later identified as Nicholson, walking back toward the vehicle. 

Nicholson told the officer she was looking for her cell phone in the hills, according to the probable cause statement. After gathering her information, the officer found she had multiple warrants out for her arrest totaling $60,000. 

After Nicholson was placed under arrest, the officer determined the vehicle she was driving did not have valid or current insurance, the statement said. While the vehicle was inventoried for a hold for the owner, the officer located a golf ball-sized amount of heroin in a backpack, as well as a white, rock-like substance. 

A Facebook post from the Stockton Police Department claimed the contents of the car included a half pound of heroin, a quarter pound of methamphetamine, several individual baggies of both substances, hundreds of dollars in cash, pipes and needles. 

The officer also located a large amount of money next to the bag containing the suspected drugs, the statement said. Nicholson also admitted to police she had smoked a controlled substance earlier prior to driving.

When Sept. 11 comes again this year, it will have been 18 years since the terrorist attacks in New York City and Washington, D.C. 

The first group of children who were born following the events of 9/11 are reaching adulthood this year. The passage of time, and the promise to never forget, motivated Dennis Tracey to host a special remembrance on Sunday, Sept. 8 during the 11 a.m. service at the Tooele United Methodist Church.  

“I believe in this, that our youth have to have a sense of history,” Tracey said. “We have a whole generation now that has grown up since 9/11.”

The 9/11 remembrance will include relevant music and a talk by Tracey, which will feature a strong visual representation of the death toll in armed conflicts since the terrorist attacks. Tracey said he will drop a penny into a bowl for each of the U.S. soldiers killed in the Iraq War. 

A total of 2,977 people were killed in the Sept. 11 attacks, excluding the 19 hijackers. In just the initial operations of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom, there were 4,432 and 2,353 total deaths, respectively.  

“It’s now been 18 years since 9/11 took place and we still have men and women dying in Afghanistan,” said Tracey, a Vietnam War veteran. 

Tracey was working at the satellite operation center at the U.S. Army’s Fort Detrick in Maryland when 9/11 occurred. 

“I watched 18,19, 20-year-old kids turn into soldiers in just a moment’s time,” he said. 

While the ensuing wars will be part of the Sept. 8 service, Tracey said he will also focus on the first responders on 9/11. In the attack on the World Trade Centers, there were 343 New York City firefighters, 23 New York City police officers and 37 Port Authority officers among those killed. 

“I don’t think our first responders get near the credit that they deserve,” Tracey said. 

An American flag that Tracey will have with him for the remembrance includes the names of everyone who died in the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. 

“All of the people who died on 9/11 are in the stripes of that flag,” he said. 

Part of the message of the service will be Christians are all first responders if they see something wrong or someone hurting, Tracey said. 

The Tooele United Methodist Church is located at 78 E. Utah Ave. and holds regular Sunday services at 11 a.m. Both the church and the special remembrance are open to the public.

A teenager struck by a passenger car on Main Street in Grantsville Sunday is now in stable condition and doing well, according to the Grantsville City Police Department. 

Grantsville City police were dispatched to a traffic accident involving a pedestrian at the intersection of Willow and Main streets at 5:41 p.m., according to a post on the department’s Facebook page. When officers arrived on scene, they found a 14-year-old child had been struck by a vehicle while using a crosswalk. 

The victim was in critical condition and transported by University of Utah AirMed helicopter, the post said. To land the helicopter, Main Street was closed in the area in both directions for approximately 45 minutes. 

Charges for the driver of the vehicle are pending, according to Grantsville City Police Sgt. Lydon Allred. 

A citizen present at the accident who was an EMT was able to provide aid to the injured child, according to the police department’s post. Also responding to the accident were the Grantsville City Fire Department, Tooele County Sheriff’s Office and Mountain West Ambulance.

A review of evidence storage in Utah’s district and juvenile courts, released by the state Auditor’s Office last Wednesday, found a number of problems, including inadequate evidence management and insufficient controls on sensitive or valuable evidence like firearms and drugs. 

“The Court System’s current tools and evidence management practices are not adequate to implement the needed level of evidence security,” said State Auditor John Dougall. “Inadequate oversight of evidence increases the risk that evidence could be lost, stolen, damaged, or tampered with.”

Utah statute allows law enforcement officers to take possession of property in different ways, including seizing property related to a crime, such as money, firearms or drug paraphernalia. To ensure the evidence is secure, the Utah Judicial Council and the Administrative Office of the Courts are required to establish appropriate management controls and procedures, which include documenting and auditing evidence inventory, the audit report said.  

In the audit, six unidentified district courts and three juvenile courts were selected. The auditor’s office reviewed controls, best practices, and procedures for compliance with state code. 

The audit discovered problems out of the gate when it attempted to review the number of missing items by completing an inventory of the items held by the various courts. 

“However, due to the inadequacy of the courts’ evidence management practices, we were unable to conduct an inventory,” the audit report said. 

Best practices from the International Association for Property and Evidence include having an inventory conducted annually or whenever there is a change in evidence room personnel. 

“None of the clerks or exhibit managers we interviewed had knowledge of an evidence inventory, a self-audit, or an independent audit ever being performed,” the state auditor’s report said. 

Some court clerks and exhibit managers used features of their case management systems to record an evidentiary item when it was admitted during a court hearing, as well as indicate where it’s being stored and its final disposition, the audit said. The system doesn’t allow the creation of an inventory list, however, so the clerks and exhibit managers don’t know what items should be in the evidence room. 

Other exhibit managers used handwritten logs, notes or index cards to help document, track and locate evidence. The audit described these methods as tedious to search, which introduce additional human error and can easily be lost or destroyed. 

Each clerk seemed to have their own method of managing evidence, the audit said. 

To deal with the issues, the audit recommended using modern evidence management systems instead of handwritten methods, implementing management practices to allow clerks and exhibit managers to create inventory lists, require regular inventories of evidence and annual audits, and ensure court supervisors regularly inspect the evidence function. 

The audit also discovered either weak or lacking controls over evidence storage. None of the sampled courts maintained an access log for the evidence storage rooms, while five didn’t have multiple requirements to enter the room, such as a personnel card, biometric identification or hard key. 

Three of the courts allowed other people beside the exhibit manager and supervisor to access the evidence room. Four of the rooms had only a hard key for access, with no trail that could be audited. 

None of the courts reviewed in the audit had an alarm system for their evidence room, while only two had cameras near the door to the evidence room, according to the audit report. 

One of the evidence rooms had water leaking into it, which was dampening the carpet. This issue persisted when auditors returned 16 weeks later. 

 The audit report recommended requiring anyone who is not the exhibit manager or supervisor to sign and date an access log before entering the evidence room, supervisors should review access logs and keycard access at least monthly, and cameras and perimeter alarms should be installed. 

Auditors also found issues with inadequate documentation for the disposal of vulnerable evidence, including one case in which a previous exhibit manager “disposed of ‘a lot of firearms and narcotics’ by returning them to different police agencies by ‘loading a truck full of weapons and then returning them to the agencies.’”

In a letter attached to the released audit, State Court Administrator Judge Mary T. Noonan said steps are already being taken to address some of the issues from the audit report, including the creation of a baseline inventory in all district and juvenile courts, drafting detailed evidence and inventory policies, and generating a plan to train court clerks and evidence managers on how to effectively apply the evidence and inventory policies and procedures.