OGDEN, Utah, Jan. 27, 2022 (Gephardt Daily) — An Ogden father charged with assaulting his son after the teen said he didn’t want to serve a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints now has a trial date.
The 50-year-old suspect faces a June 6 trial date with Second District Judge Cristina Ortega.
In the Aug. 21, 2020 incident, the suspect faces charges of aggravated assault, and domestic violence in the presence of a child, both third-degree felonies.
A probable cause statement filed by an officer of the Ogden City Police Department says he was called to a family disturbance on Jackson Avenue, and found the father physically fighting his son.
“I spoke with (the suspect) at the front door of his home where he stated that he had attempted to remove his son from the home after his son stated he did not wish to go on his LDS church mission,” the statement says.
The 18-year-old victim confirmed the topic, and said his father “then grabbed him by the arm during this argument and the two began to physically fight. The victim reported that during this fight he was knocked to the ground and (the suspect) began to strike the victim’s head into the wall repeatedly as well as squeeze the victim’s neck with both hands.”
The officer noted he observed multiple scratches and redness on the victim’s neck, and “The victim was visibly shaking while speaking with me about the incident and was hesitant to provide details.”
The officer was informed two younger juveniles, ages 15 and 17, were on scene and heard the altercation, although they did not see it.
The suspect’s “spouse also witnessed a portion of the incident and stated she had walked down the stairs after hearing fighting and witnessed the suspect holding the victim in a ‘bear hug,’ at which point she intervened.”
The officer’s statement says that after other interviews, the suspect approached me in order to provide me with further detail of the incident. He reported that he had attempted to forcibly remove victim from the home as it was his house. (The suspect) did confirm that the victim was his son and had lived in the home for 18 years, when I pointed out that the victim appeared to be a lawful resident, (the suspect) stated I was not a lawyer.”
The father was arrested and booked into Weber County Jail, but was later released and put under the supervision of pretrial services personnel.
