OGDEN, Utah, July 16, 2024 (Gephardt Daily) — A man was arrested Sunday after he allegedly assaulted a man who tried to get him to leave an Ogden intersection, where he was interfering with traffic.
Jeffrey Adam Smith, 42, the suspect, was reported to police.
“Witnesses stated that the male was yelling and approaching cars as though he were trying to be hit,” says his affidavit, filed by an officer of the Ogden City Police. “They stated that he was acting erratically and appeared to be under the influence of an unknown substance.”
As Ogden officers approached the scene, “it was reported that several citizens were now in the street attempting to calm the male down and get him out of the roadway,” according to an Ogden officer who arrived on scene.
As he exited his vehicle, the officer said he “observed the male matching the given description punch another male in the face with a closed fist. The victim was struck unconscious and fell straight backward, smacking his head on the asphalt with force,” the officer said in a sworn statement.
“The victim was not conscious, but was still breathing.”
Smith was detained and questioned.
“He stated that he was in the street trying to clean up the streets. He stated the victim and others had approached him and he told them not to touch him, but the victim had touched him, so he knocked him out.”
Smith tried to avoid being handcuffed, the officer’s statement said.
“Officer Garcia and I then forced him to the ground when he laid on his side with his knees bent up towards his chest and began pulling his arms towards his chest to prevent us from placing them in handcuffs.”
Smith ultimately was cuffed and transported to the Weber County jail. He now faces multiple charges, including:
- Aggravated assault resulting in serious bodily injury, a second-degree felony
- Interfering with a peace officer, a class B misdemeanor
- Disorderly conduct, an infraction
The man who was struck and transported to the hospital was later interviewed by the officer who filed the sworn affidavit.
“Upon speaking with the victim, he had no knowledge of the incident,” the statement says. “He was missing a large several hour gap in his memory. He stated that he was not aware that he had been assaulted he only remembers waking up in the hospital.
Medical personnel informed the victim that as a direct result of the assault he sustained a skull fracture and a brain bleed “and that if not treated immediately, he could die from these injuries.”
Smith was ordered held without bail and remained incarcerated as of Tuesday.
