FARMINGTON, Utah, Oct. 24, 2016 (Gephardt Daily) — A man accused of tying up a woman and her four teenage daughters in a basement and attacking some of them with a baseball bat has been ordered by a judge to serve at least 30 years and up to life in prison.
Dereck James (D.J.) Harrison, who went before a judge in Davis County at 9 a.m Monday, accepted a plea deal in September and pleaded guilty to five counts of aggravated kidnapping, a first-degree felony. The rest of his 16 charges in Utah were dropped.
Harrison, 23, was ordered to serve four concurrent sentences of 15 years to life, with a fifth sentence to be served consecutively for the five counts.
He still faces a murder case in Wyoming, where he’s charged with kidnapping and killing a Utah Transit Authority worker while on the run from police.
D.J. Harrison and his father Flint Harrison, 52, were charged June 28 with two counts of murder, one count of kidnapping and one count of wrongful taking or disposing of property in the beating death of UTA worker Kay Porter Ricks, 63.
Flint Harrison was found dead in July after apparently hanging himself in his cell at Davis County Jail.
Authorities believe Ricks was kidnapped as the father and son tried to flee the state after reportedly kidnapping the mother and her four teenage daughters in Centerville in May, after luring them to a residence by inviting them to a barbecue.
The victims were able to escape and summon help.
Both Harrisons were brought back from Wyoming, where Ricks’ murder took place, to Utah, to face charges on the mother and daughters’ kidnapping case while Wyoming officials conducted their murder investigation.
Flint Harrison’s suicide came 26 days after the Wyoming murder charges were filed.
