MILLCREEK, Utah, July 3, 2023 (Gephardt Daily) — A man was booked into the Salt Lake County jail system Monday after allegedly firing a gun at a delivery truck in a road rage incident.
Charged in the case is Tyler Joshua Foutz, 24. Sgt. Melody Cutler, Unified Police spokeswoman, told Gephardt Daily a second man is being charged. His probable cause statement is not yet available in the state’s online court system, so Gephardt Daily will not yet share his name.
The Monday incident began when a man called 911 “stating he had been involved in a road rage incident and the occupants of the other vehicle involved fired a gun at him,” Foutz’s charging documents say. The affidavit says Foutz was the passenger in the car.
The caller was the driver of a semi-truck used for Amazon deliveries, Cutler said.
“He said he was exiting onto 700 East from I-80 eastbound when a silver Hyundai crossed four lanes of traffic and nearly ran him off the road. … (The victim) said he honked his horn at the vehicle and the occupants began displaying their middle fingers out the windows.”
The victim said when he turned south on the 700 East, the Hyundai driver and passenger pulled up beside the semi, and started cursing at him and calling him a racial slur.
The victim said “since he is Black this comment is obviously offensive and triggered him. (The victim) said they kept telling him to stop and were challenging him to a fight.”
The victim said he made a left turn to go east on 3300 South, and the two suspects followed him, and “they pulled the vehicle in front of him and started brake checking him. He said he pulled over and stopped to try and let (Foutz and the other male) go ahead so they didn’t cause an accident. He said (the suspects) stopped in front of him and exited their vehicle. (The victim) said he exited his vehicle and deployed pepper spray at (the suspects).”
The victim said the men got back in the Hyundai and drove away, and he made a U-turn and headed back to 700 East to drive south.
“He observed Hyundai pull along side his truck,” the affidavit continues. The victim “said he heard shots being fired and ducked down to avoid being struck. (The victim) said the vehicle drove away in an unknown direction.”
The victim said he called 911, and was told to pull over and wait for officers to arrive, Foutz’s affidavit says.
“After giving his report to the police, they had left him at the scene. He said a few minutes after the police left him, he observed the same Hyundai, this time without a license plate drive, by him,” charging documents say. The victim “said he followed the vehicle again north on 700 East. (He) said he observed police officers in a parking lot, honked his horn, pointing them to the suspect vehicle.”
The officers activated their lights, and the Hyundai fled, the report says.
Another Unified Police officer told the officer who filed the report that “he attempted to stop the Hyundai and it fled. He said the vehicle at one point was going 100 mph, north on 700 East.”
The Hyundai sped east on 3300 South, running a red light at 1300 East, “and colliding with another vehicle causing it (the Hyundai) to roll onto its roof,” the affidavit says.
The driver and passenger Foutz were taken into custody. Foutz was taken to the hospital by ambulance to be checked out.
“A handgun magazine was observed in plain view inside the Hyundai; one spent 9mm Winchester shell casing was found in the debris at the crash site. Five more spent 9mm Winchester shell casings were found at 4200 South and 700 East,” Foutz’s charging documents say.
Post Miranda, the driver (whose affidavit is not available) “admitted to driving the Hyundai and getting into an argument with (the victim). He said (the victim) started the fight by pulling up next to them for no reason and looking at them weird,” Foutz’s charging documents say.
The driver also said the semi driver challenged the men to a fight, so he and his Foutz pulled over and exited the vehicle, and the semi driver sprayed them with pepper stray.
The Hyundai driver said he and Foutz then drove away. The driver denied shooting a gun, charging documents say. He did admit to “drinking a few beers before this incident.”
The driver also said he did not initially see officers trying to pull him over, but when he did, he hit his brakes, which failed, causing him to collide with another vehicle.
The driver said he put the gun in the car before leaving his residence earlier in the day.
Foutz has been charged on suspicion of the following third-degree felonies:
- Six counts of felony discharge of firearm, shoot in direction of a person
- Aggravated assault
- Purchase, transfer, possession or use of a firearm by a restricted person
Foutz was ordered held without bail.
Gephardt Daily will have additional details as more information is released.
