Going West: True Crime - The Mineshaft Murders // 272

Episode Date: January 20, 2023

On December 30th, 2017, 17-year-old Breezy Otteson and 18-year-old Riley Powell went missing in Utah after meeting up with a friend. When their bodies were found brutally murdered and tossed down an abandoned Utah mine shaft, police uncovered details so shocking that the state sought the death penalty. This is the story of the Mineshaft Murders. BONUS EPISODES patreon.com/goingwestpodcast CASE SOURCES 1. Brelynne's Find A Grave: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/188523501/brelynne-marie-otteson 2. Riley's Find A Grave: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/188523575/riley-lee-powell 3. The Salt Lake Tribune: https://www.sltrib.com/news/2019/07/31/death-penalty-sought-utah/ 4. True Crime Daily: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1qeZMJqljZQ 5. The Daily Spectrum: https://www.newspapers.com/image/415003758/?terms=breezy%20otteson&match=1 6. The Daily Spectrum: https://www.newspapers.com/image/500625138/?terms=riley%20powell&match=1 7. KSL: https://www.ksl.com/article/21253403/2-killed-in-head-on-collision-identified 8. Nannette's Find A Grave: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/188523711/nannette-jena-hamby 9. KSL: https://www.ksl.com/article/46293004 10. KSL: https://www.ksl.com/article/46295730/teens-remembered-for-their-carefree-spirit-helpful-nature 11. East Idaho News: https://www.eastidahonews.com/2018/03/man-murdered-couple-dumped-their-bodies-in-a-mine-police-say/ 12. UEN.org: https://www.uen.org/utah_history_encyclopedia/e/EUREKA.shtml 13. Breezy's Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Breezyotteson2000 14. Riley's Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/powell.riley 15. Memorial Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/SearchingForBreezyandRiley 16. The Salt Lake Tribune: https://www.newspapers.com/image/612861988/?terms=jerrod%20baum&match=1 17. The Salt Lake Tribune: https://www.newspapers.com/image/613775374/?terms=jerrod%20baum&match=1 18. Lakeside Review: https://www.newspapers.com/image/602777584/?terms=jerrod%20baum&match=1 19. Fox 13: https://www.fox13now.com/news/local-news/jerrod-baum-sentenced-to-four-life-sentences-for-murder-of-two-utah-teens 20. KSL: https://ksltv.com/472282/utah-county-attorney-announces-he-will-no-longer-seek-the-death-penalty/ 21. Salt Lake Tribune: https://www.sltrib.com/news/2022/06/10/jerrod-baum-says-im-not/ 22. KSL: https://www.ksl.com/article/50420393/narcissistic-brutal-act-of-cowardice-judge-throws-book-at-convicted-killer-jerrod-baum Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

What is going on True Crime fans? I'm your host Tee. And I'm your host Daphne. And you're listening to Going West. Thank you everybody for tuning in. Think it a done for recommending today's case. Appreciate you everybody for tuning in, think it had done for recommending today's case appreciate you done. Today we have a case at a Utah that's just really area automatically because it involves a mine shaft that happens to be over 1000 feet

deep. I feel like we've only talked about one other case that dealt with a mine shaft and I think it was also in Utah. It was, actually. I feel like there was one other one, and I cannot remember what it was. Are you talking about Susan Powell? Oh, no, not Susan Powell. Oh, what are you talking about? There was another one.

Well, we also covered Susan Powell up so 10. We did, long ago. Yes, we did. So maybe there's another one, but I think that was in Utah as well. We got to figure out which case that was. But I also wanted to mention, we just came out with our 80 first Patreon bonus episode. We have 81 episodes.

The one we just came out with is from Iceland and we do a bunch of international cases, but also just US cases as well. And you can check them out. They're full length and ad free. patreon.com slash going west podcast. If you guys are all caught up in the show and you need more content from Heath and I. I mean, think about it.

That's 81 episodes that you have not heard or will not hear ongoing west. Yeah. So that's like 10 months worth of going west episodes, all immediately available as soon as you subscribe. That's a lot. It is a lot of months. Yes. So let's get into today's episode. This is episode 272 of Going West.

So let's get into it. 1 tbc 1 tbc 1 tbc 1 tbc 1 tbc 1 tbc 1 tbc 1 tbc 1 tbc 1 tbc

1 tbc 1 tbc 1 tbc 1 tbc 1 tbc On December 30, 2017, 17-year-old Breezy Autison and 18-year-old Riley Powell went missing in Utah after meeting up with a friend. When their bodies were found brutally murdered and tossed down in abandoned Utah mineshaft, police uncovered details so shocking that the state sought the death penalty. This is the story of the mineshaft murders. Braylon Marie Audison, better known as Breezy.

We're going to call her Breezy in this episode because that's what everybody called her. She was born on January 27th, 2000 in Salt Lake City, Utah to parents Nanette Baird and Kenneth Audison. Her parents split up when she was young and both eventually remarried. Her dad Kenneth married a woman named Emily and her mom Nanette married a man named Jared who had a daughter named Jordan from a previous relationship.

So together, the blended family consisted of breezy and five siblings, brother Kenan and sister's Calista, Madison, Anisti, and like I said, Jordan. Breezy's family described her as strong and outspoken with a larger than life personality and an unwaveringly good heart. Above all else, she loved spending time with her friends and family. And Kalista, who again is Breezy's older sister, couldn't figure out if it was Kalista or Kylista. I saw both, so I'm saying Kalista, I'm so sorry if that's wrong.

But she spoke to Breezy at least once a day and this is what she said of her quote, she was my best sister. She could always put a smile on your face. I don't think anybody was like her. Breezy was athletic and loved the outdoors. She loved spending time swimming, playing baseball and doing gymnastics. And sadly, in 2012, tragedy rocked the family

when her mom and stepdad, again, Nenet and Jared, were killed in a car accident. They had been married for less than a year when a motorist, driving on a flat tire on the highway, lost control of her vehicle and swerved into Nenet and Jared's car head on, killing them almost instantly. Nenette's obituary called Jared the love of her life and said she, quote, "'loved and lived for her little girls. She spent most of her time being the best mom she could be.

Nenette was known for her loyalty to friends and family and would go out of her way for any of them. Breezy was just 11 years old when her mom and stepdad were taken from her, so she really struggled with her new reality at such a young age. And according to her mom's sister, so Breezy's aunt Amanda, she said, quote, she's grown up a very difficult life. Likely due to the passing of her mom and stepdad, Breezy eventually relocated to Eureka, which is about an hour and a half south of Utah's capital of Salt Lake City, again where Breezy was born. And around August of 2017, Breezy started dating 18-year-old

Riley Powell and the two fell quickly and deeply for each other. One of the things that the young couple initially bonded over was their family struggles, which Riley was no stranger to. Riley Lee Powell was born on April 28, 1999 in Provo, Utah, to Misty Carlson, but was quickly taken from her due to her drug use. Riley was initially raised by his grandmother and her husband at the time, Linda and Bill Powell, along with his sisters, Nika and Jule. Bill really stepped up for the family, and even legally adopted Riley as his son.

Love when they do that. Right, and that is a very sweet thing, but Bill and Linda did eventually get divorced, and the three kids spent time between the two homes. But Bill claims that he and Riley spent most of their time together. But despite Bill and Riley having this really great relationship, Riley definitely struggled a bit as a teenager, and he even was sent to a boys' home after bringing a gun in his backpack to school one day. Although he claimed that this was because he was planning to go rabbit hunting later. But despite his setbacks, Riley's remembered as a kind and gentle young man, with a soft

smile and a quick wit. Like Breezy, he loved spending time outdoors, playing basketball and off-roading with his dad. He was a thrill seeker and a lover of adventure, but also he had a sensitive side. He adored his sisters, he loved animals, and his obituary states quote, loved breezy. Breezy's Antamanda speculated quote, she struggled with that affection, she struggled with feeling that people loved her and the same with Riley. I think they both wanted to be loved. Despite having to change high schools, Riley managed to graduate on time and trained to

become a plumber, living in Eureka with his dad, which is about 45 minutes from Provo, where Riley was born. The town of Eureka hosts less than 700 people, and one reporter working the teen's case even called it a ghost town. Incorporated in 1892, Ureca began as a gold rush town, and gold, silver, and mineral mines sprung up all over the area. It was hit pretty hard in the Great Depression, and the population then started to decline rapidly in the 1930s.

But the legacy from its humble beginnings as a mining town still remained. And it was there that breezy and Riley met. Amanda called the relationship meaningful and serious, saying, quote, she felt safe with him. The two dreamed of a long and happy future together that included marriage and children, and their family thought that they were great together as well, calling them a quote, carefree, outgoing, and friendly duo. Less than two weeks before the two disappeared, Riley posted a photo of him and Breezy with

their tongues out caption quote she is my world and he also had a picture of breezy with that snapchat dog filter that you know goes on your face and that's his cover photo. So when they went missing which I know you're about about to get into heath they would have been dating for about four months so not terribly long but they already knew that they wanted to be together and they had this really great relationship. Yeah, it seems like they fell for each other very quickly. So the young couple enjoyed spending their first holidays together, stopping by to see

all of the parents, step parents, grandparents, siblings, aunts and uncles and cousins in the area together. On December 30, 2017, the pair drove the hour from Yorika to Tuwila together to visit some of Breezy's family for a late Christmas slash early New Year's gathering. And that would be the last time that her family would see or hear from either of them. Three days passed, including New Year's, with no word from either of them, and the family while concerned, assumed that they had ventured off by themselves for a few days.

In Bill's words, he said, quote, we were hoping that they were still out goofing off somewhere, but that wasn't the case. There was no activity on their debit cards, neither they nor their cars were spotted, and there was no social media activity on any of their accounts, which is obviously troublesome because they are a young couple. So when January 2, 2018 rolled around, Breezy's family decided to report her missing. Now, the police initially weren't too concerned, and they said that they did not suspect foul play, but a cursory search of Riley's social media revealed

that they had made a stop on the way home. A friend of Riley's, Morgan Henderson, had the couple over on their way back to Ureka from Twilla. And Morgan lived in mammoth, Utah, about 10 minutes outside of Ureka with her boyfriend, Jared Baum. When police contacted her and asked about the Facebook messages that she exchanged with Riley, she said that she had Riley and Breezy over for about 40 minutes that evening on their way back to Eureka.

Now Morgan claimed that they left together afterward and that she hadn't seen them since. But the last message in Riley and Morgan's Facebook message thread was Riley telling her that he and Breezy would be over soon. But it's worth mentioning that Morgan was 34 years old at the time and did not explain why she was friends with 18 year old Riley, or why she had hosted two teenagers in her house. Yeah, kind of bizarre.

But with nothing but Morgan's account of the last time they were seen to go off of, police cast a wide net. Now, the area surrounding Eureka is very rugged and mountainous, so the teens could be anywhere. They focused first on trying to locate Riley's car, which was a blue Jeep Grand Cherokee, because obviously, the car could lead to the location of them and could kind of tell them, you know, where

they had headed. Meanwhile, the community and of course Breezy and Riley's large extended families teamed up to search together on foot. Bill searched for the pair every single day, sometimes on his own. And Amanda remembers reaching out to Riley's biological mother, who remember is named Misty, and claimed that she was no help. Initially, Misty didn't even respond, and then when she did, she simply said that she couldn't make it to any of the search parties and that she wished that she could do more,

which might show up kind of as a red flag in a little bit when we get more into her and her boyfriend. But you guys will see. So together, the two families offered a $2,000 reward for information leading to an arrest, eventually increasing it to $5,000 because all of them just knew that something was very wrong here. And just two weeks later, or just less than two weeks later, on January 11, 2018, the first major clue in their disappearance emerged.

Riley's Jeep. Air patrols searching the vast area alongside police via drones spotted the car tucked away in a very secluded area miles away from Eureka. The car had been concealed in an area of trees and brush, empty, by the way, inside, with the windows down, and the rear tires were slashed, which didn't look good. It was found just south of Cherry Creek Reservoir, which is a body of water nearly 20 miles or 32 kilometers southwest of Eureka. But unfortunately, there was very little indication in or near the car that pointed to what

may have happened to Breezy or Riley. However, investigators did notice a camouflage tow strap attached to the vehicle. Oh, so this is kind of interesting, because that makes it feel like maybe the car had gotten stuck and someone came to Possibly help possibly we're gonna get into that in a second or get back to that in a second But either way the discovery of Riley's abandoned car was really enough for investigators to deem their disappearance foul play So the car really bolstered the investigation with renewed attention, as well as fear, among the community. And one local came forward, remembering they had seen a car that looked like Ryleys being towed by a truck owned by another local, giving credence

to the toastrap that police found on Ryleys Jeep. And interestingly enough, this local was none other than Riley's biological mom, Misty Carlson's boyfriend. Misty was reportedly very cooperative with police, but her boyfriend, Lee Shepard, refused to be interviewed, which the sheriff himself called a quote, red flag, especially with this witness statement regarding him towing Riley's Jeep. But a few days later, on January 15, the Sheriff's Office were able to serve Misty and Lee's home with a search warrant, feeling that they are at least Lee could be hiding something. Inside the home, police confiscated letters and receipts that they thought may be pertinent

to the investigation, as well as drug paraphernalia. And the kicker? The twin to the toastrap found on Riley's jeep. But Misty fiercely denied that she would ever have heard her son, telling her a porter through tears quote, Somebody out there knows what happened to my son, and it's not me. I don't, I wouldn't hurt my son. Yeah, I gave him up for adoption.

I went through my lifestyle, yes, and my life's all fucked up, but I didn't do anything to my son. When asked if she thought Lee had anything to do with the disappearance, she said without hesitation, no. Misty then revealed that she and Lee had actually separated in the last few days, and that they no longer lived together. So of course Lee, who moved down the road from her, was also questioned by reporters. He explained that he was simply busy the day that police had come to question him, and

that he was absolutely not trying to avoid the interview. He said that the police in the media were unfairly maligning him, claiming, quote, if I knew anything about them kids, everybody would have known. Since this originally seemed like a big lead for police, without enough evidence to prove Lee's involvement, the case slowed again. But police were not giving up. So, they partnered with a dog search team using drones in conjunction with cadaver dogs, naturally beginning their search close to the Cherry Creek Reservoir, where the car

was found. Sadly, the dogs did not alert to any area, and investigators were met with a dead end once again. But crazy enough, a routine traffic stop led to a major break in this case. The San Pete County Sheriff stopped a woman for speeding, and suspecting that she was driving under the influence arrested her on the spot. The woman was Morgan Henderson, the last person known to see Breezy and Riley alive. Before that quick break, he's told us that a woman was pulled over during a routine traffic stop and guess who it was?

It was Morgan Henderson. Yeah, the last person to see Breezy and Riley alive. So obviously this isn't super weird yet. She was pulled over, but what's weird is to come. So after being pulled over, at which point she said she was on her way to the mountains, she was brought into a police station to be questioned further and admitted that she was on mushrooms and also had a weapon

in her vehicle. While she was detained for the unrelated charges, they questioned her again about breezy and Riley's disappearance because, you know, they had her in custody. And this time, she had more to say. At first, she told police that she had heard a rumor that the two were involved in a drug deal gone wrong. But then she claimed that they'd actually never shown up at her house that night,

even though she told them originally that she had them over for 40 minutes on the night she went missing. Yeah, so why would you change your story all of a sudden? Exactly. So as she changed her story, officers observed that she seemed, quote, very nervous and even scared. And as if this didn't make them more suspicious of her, she then affirmed her original story that the two had stopped by her house to say hi

and that they smoked marijuana and left after 40 minutes. So she's like going back and forth here, which is worse. And these aren't even like small details. This is like, these are huge details in this case. Whether or not she saw them at all. But when pressed by detectives, she finally shared the real story. Siding tremendous guilt, she claimed her boyfriend, Jared Baum, killed Breezy and Riley and disposed of them in a nearby abandoned mineshaft.

Two days later, which was March 27th, Morgan led police to the Tintic Standard Mine Number 2, which is a defunct mine shaft with a gaping hole, leading 1,800 feet into the ground. That's 1,800 feet, that is so freaking deep. And this sat just a 12 minute drive from Eureka Utah. So, police used a camera to just plunge into the pitch black opening of the cave, which

led them about a hundred feet down, where on a ledge, a ledge, the remains of both Riley and Breezy were found. And just the fact that they had fallen onto a ledge, a hundred feet down, when they could have fallen 1800 feet down. Yeah, that's so crazy to me. It would have been so much harder to find them that way, but they happened to fall on a ledge

that was not very deep, which is also just really scary to picture, but anyway. Yeah, mine shafts, I don't know why, but for some reason, mine shafts just like really freak me out. Oh, it'ss, I don't know why, but for some reason, mine shafts just like really freak me out. I mean, they freak me out too. I think they freak everybody out because it's a freaking deep, deep, deep, dark narrow pit hole. Yeah. So police actually did have their eyes on this area and that mine, particularly from the beginning of the investigation. But because it's private property, they needed a warrant to check it out which they didn't have so they had to wait out the bureaucracy of the system to finally obtain

This search warrant which they did thanks to Morgan showing them the location and I just kind of wonder how That mind shaft in particular came into their or came on to their radar. Yeah, I don't know actually it's a good question But the following day, March 28, 2018, 41-year-old Jared Baum was charged with the murders of 17-year-old breezy Odison and 18-year-old Riley Powell. And two days after that, on the same day that the medical examiner confirmed the identities of the teens. Morgan was also arrested, but for obstruction of justice.

Good. Yeah, she was trying to cover her boyfriend's tracks. I mean, yeah, and as you'll see, she knows the whole story. So Breezy's Aunt Amanda said sadly, we were ready for it. It's just, you just don't know how you're going to react when it comes. It's the closure we wanted, but it's obviously an emotional roller coaster. And remember, this discovery came almost exactly three months after they originally disappeared, so they had been waiting for three months. And Riley's sister echoed through tears, quote, My brother didn't deserve this and neither did she.

We had a whole life. We had a whole life to live. She was only 17 and he was only 18." And actually what's crazy is that Jared Baum was already incarcerated on unrelated charges at this time. And according to the police affidavit detailing his arrest, they said, quote, And Jared is known to law enforcement to associate with the criminal element in and around Ureka in the Jewab County area. Jared had been arrested on February 13, 2018, for being a, quote, restricted person in possession of a weapon.

But that was just the beginning of his laundry list of charges. He committed his first crime and he was just 10 years old. When he shot another little boy with a handgun, wild, 10 years old. Then in 1996, the Salt Lake Tribune printed an article about teen felons that centered around Jared himself as their case study. A member of Jared's parole board is quoted saying, In my 30 years in this business, I don't know when I've read a file more troubling. Jared was actually sentenced to life when at just 15 years old, he embarked upon a crime spree, sorry, that included the theft of three different vehicles and a gun. He then used this stolen gun to rob a burger king and or a mutha and shot

at two employees that tried to stop him. He was apprehended after he was pulled over and one of the stolen vehicles and reached for his gun while being questioned by an officer and his explanation was quote, I was mainly out to get high on an adrenaline rush. It was not to hurt people just to get away with it, you know, the crime itself. Which is so dangerous because that kind of person who just wants the thrill of the crime can do anything. And he's just a dirtbag. So at just 15 years old, he was imprisoned in a juvenile detention center, but due to

overcrowding, he was forced to mingle with adult felons. In another interview while serving his sentence, Jared said, quote, "'As soon as I walk into a place I'm robbing, my adrenaline blows up.'" That same interview explains that he was number five on the list of Utah's worst juvenile offenders. Later, while incarcerated as an adult, Jared and four other inmates were charged with inciting a prison riot that caused $40,000 in damage to the facility. In his prison jumpsuit, a waiting trial, a photographer captured a photo of a swastika tattooed

on his chest. Another tattoo across his knuckles spelled out pure hate. Oh great, so he's a racist shithead too. Well get ready for this. He was known for associating with white supremacists in prison and even fashion the murder weapon for a friend of his in prison that was used to kill a black man. And Jared was reportedly yelling in support of his friend as the murder occurred, like he's just a total piece of shit. And the prosecuting attorney and Jared's case said of him, quote,

the defendant's life is a monument to hate and violence. That's quite a statement to say that. And it's accurate. And sadly, somehow he was eventually released. Yeah, insane. So this will come as probably no surprise to anyone, but Jared was also a jealous and controlling partner. What else would he be?

What other kind of partner would he be? Right. So when he and Morgan began dating, he instructed her that she was not allowed to be alone in a room with another man. And according to the police affidavit, they said, quote, he had previously instructed her to not have guy friends. So when Jared arrived home on the evening of December 30th, 2017,

to find Morgan's smoking weed with Breezy and Riley, he was livid. Dude, like Riley is with his girlfriend. Right. And he's a bowly. He's 18. Yeah, makes no sense. So in Morgan's words, she said, quote, he was angry. I disobeyed. I had done something that I wasn't supposed to do.

I was scared, terrified. I knew that we were in trouble. I knew something bad was happening. And it's like, man, why even be with this guy? If that's how you feel, you know? I know. I mean, I agree, but I feel like a lot of people are in relationships with people who are abusive and they don't know how to get out of them And maybe she did want to leave, but she could in or she like I said didn't know how I mean he was a scary guy apparently so terrifying so Morgan remembered that he had brought the teens outside leaving her in the house, and when Jared returned to retrieve her, he told her that they were going to go for a drive to talk things out. Breezy and Riley were in the back of Riley's car, staying silent, so she thought.

So for the 20 minute drive to the mind from their house in mammoth, she thought that everything was going to be okay. In the car, she remembered that Jared's demeanor changed. He seemed calmer and more level-headed. It wasn't until they arrived that Morgan apparently realized that breezy and Riley's hands had been bound and their mouths sealed with duct tape. Like, apparently on this, I'm gonna say apparently a lot in this part, I think, but she didn't look behind her at all or even think to wonder why they were sitting completely silent the entire drive only to find that they were, they had their mouths duct tape shut.

Yeah, I just, I don't, I don't buy that. I personally don't know how much of this, of her side, I believe that's why I keep saying apparently because I don't really know how much I believe well we already know that she lied so I mean it's hard to you know we have to take everything that she says with the grain assault you're right so when they reach the that when they reached the tintic standard mine number two outside of Erika Jared told everybody to get out of the car and remove the duct tape from breezy and Riley's mouths.

As Jared marched everyone through the brush in the freezing cold night of a Utah winter, Morgan observed that her boyfriend was acting normally and was even being charming and chatting with the couple as they walked. But Breezy was allergic to sage, so she had asked politely if her hands could be unbound because they were going numb since they had brushed up against so many sage bushes, and Jared replied, no, we're almost there. Pleading with him to stop whatever he was doing, Breezy even apparently told Jared that she was pregnant, just hoping that he would change his mind. But he simply offered his congratulations and continued walking them to the opening of

the mine shaft. This guy is so cold-hearted. It's horrible. Jared told Morgan to kneel in what she called an execution-style pose. It was then she said she realized that they were all going to die that night. Morgan braced herself to be shot in the back of the head, breezy cried in fear, and Morgan reached out and held her hand. Morgan remembered Riley asking if he could kiss breezy, to which Jared did not respond, and instead began to beat him ruthlessly.

Morgan allegedly initially thought that Jared was just hitting Riley until Riley cried out, I'm dying, and she realized that Jared had been stabbing him. Morgan remembered this grew some detail of Riley's death, and sorry guys this is going to be a bit graphic and basically just horrible, but she said she remembered quote, the gurgling, it was the most horrible sound I have ever heard. All he said was, I'm dying, and he was on the ground and Jared kept doing it. When Jared finally stopped, after stabbing and hitting him over 30 times. He said, quote, goodbye, Riley, you piece of shit. Remember Riley did nothing wrong.

He literally was just in the presence of Jared's girlfriend with his own girlfriend. Yeah, it's so disgusting. So then Jared turned his attention to breezy and told her, quote, it's okay, darling, before quickly slitting her throat. Surprisingly, Morgan's life was spared.

She said Jared seemed almost surprised with himself, saying, quote, I've never killed an innocent before. He then told her that she needed to, quote, pull herself together, because they needed to cover up what he had just done. She watched him throw breezy and Riley's bodies into the mine, noting that with breezes he was quote, extra gentle. According to Morgan, he threatened to kill her and her son if she didn't do what he told her to do. So Morgan herself drove Riley's Jeep to the Cherry Creek Reservoir where it was discovered two weeks later.

The two then returned to their home in Mammoth and Jarrod instructed her to take her clothes off. He cut up the clothes and shoes that she had been wearing and soaked them in bleach and they both showered in bleach as well. And then Jarrod burned everything that they were wearing that night. Morgan later actually led police to a rusty barrel containing oil, where Jared had disposed of cigarettes, rope, duct tape, knife sheaths, roofing nails, baby wipes, plastic bags, and the couple's cell phones, and also a toast strap matching the one that was found on Riley's Jeep. So following the murders, Morgan claimed that Jared stayed caught up on local news coverage

of the case, and that watching their family suffer brought him happiness, because, quote, he enjoys pain. God, that just makes you so mad. So Morgan said that she was so afraid of Jared and so racked with guilt at the teen's death that she considered taking her own life, but that her friendship with Riley and her desire to bring closure to the family encouraged her to bring the truth to light. Even though again, she did lie and it doesn't seem like she was going to willingly bring

this to police until they kind of backed her into a corner, but that's just my opinion. So breezy and Riley's families pushed for the death penalty for Jared, but it was taken off the table before Jared's trial even started. The Utah County Attorney announced in 2021 that he would no longer seek capital punishment, saying, quote, all of what we've spent and more would be worth it if it would prevent another senseless murder from occurring, but it doesn't and it won't. Pretending that the death penalty will somehow curb crime is simply a lie. The answer to preventing these types of horrible crimes is in education and prevention before they occur. No family wants

to hear, my child is dead and that man got a long sentence. What they want to hear is, my child was never killed. The family's visibly wept at this news. And Amanda said, quote, that's the one thing we were sure of. These kids didn't get to choose their life, they didn't get to fight. So why should he get an option to live? We want justice for these kids. And if the death penalty is what it is, then we're going to stand for it.

Bill agreed, saying, I'd love it. And I'm not saying 5, 6, 20 years down the road. Take him out back and do it as soon as the judge says, you're guilty. Do it. These kids have no life. He doesn't deserve a life. We, as taxpayers taxpayers don't need to support him or give him a life because he took life. So I think, do away with him as soon as possible, as fast as possible. We want justice and we want him to pay for what he did. But sadly, with the death penalty off the table, their families set their sights on a life sentence. Bill remarked, quote, We just hope that the outcome here is what we're looking for. The original outcome got taken away from us, but life in prison is the next thing that we got to look forward to, and we hope that that happens.

At the trial, Amanda agreed, she said quote, It's unreal that we're here. We have fought tooth and nail to get here, and it's an emotional day to know that we've made it, and that we can finally see it through. Jared was charged with two counts of aggravated murder, aggravated kidnapping, desecration of a body, obstruction of justice,

and possession of a dangerous weapon by a restricted person. Jared's defense attorney, which is so hard to believe that he even has defense, Dallas Young had actually grown up with Jared and attended the same elementary school. Dallas told the court. Does he deserve it? No, but that's what we're asking. I'm glad that he at least said, does he deserve it? No. But the judge was less diplomatic, calling the crime the, quote,

most violent, the most selfish, the most senseless, and the most disturbing that he had ever seen in his career. He then addressed Jared directly saying, quote, in allowing for a life sentence without the possibility of parole, the law shows more mercy to the defendant than he showed to Riley and Breezy. Each day, when you wake up to see the walls confining you, and each night when you close your eyes

to see the walls disappear, remember that these are privileges that Riley and Breezy no longer experience because you murdered them. Because unlike your victims, you live to see another day. So on April 15th, 2022, Jared Bomb was found guilty on all accounts and sentenced to four consecutive life terms. And Jared protested this by saying, quote, I'm not a monster, I don't kill people, I don't know what else to say, but I am sorry

that these youngsters got killed, got murdered, I wouldn't have done it, I would not have done that. They were no threat. Yeah, right guy. So Morgan was actually sentenced to three years in prison for obstruction of justice. The mind shaft where Breezy and Riley were killed was actually supposed to be shut down that year, officials believing it posed a safety hazard.

Obviously, because it's so freaking deep. A spokeswoman for the Utah Division of Oil, Gas, and Mining echoed this in regards to the teen's death, saying, gas, and mining echoed this in regards to the teen's death," saying quote. Unfortunately, an abandoned mind is probably a good place to dispose of something like that, a person or something you want to hide forever. Since 1982, there have been 11 deaths and more than 40 injuries in abandoned Utah mines. More than 6,000 mines have been sealed so far.

The Tintic Standard Mine has been renamed the Breezy and Riley Memorial at Tintic Standard Number 2 and is always adorned with flowers and decorations for the couple. Every holiday season Amanda hosts a memorial event decorating a Christmas tree in memory of Breezy and Riley. The families have been incredibly supportive of each other during this time, Amanda and Bill becoming the de facto family spokesperson. Breezy and Riley are always remembered as a pair and the two even share a memorial Facebook group.

At the couple's funeral service, Bill said, quote, they're going to be missed. Now we have to move on to the next stage and get justice for those kids, and I hope it comes soon. Real soon. I wish I would have had a lot more time to teach him more, but we deal with what we've got to deal with. Breezy's obituary reads, quote, the beautiful light she brought to this world

was extinguished much too soon. A man to set of her beloved niece quote, When the breeze blows in your hair, When you see the color pink or when you smell roses, Remember our loving sweet braillein. Thank you so much everybody for listening to this episode of Going West. Yes, thank you guys so much for listening to this episode and on Tuesday we'll have an all new case for you guys to dive into. Thank you so much again Don for letting us know about this case I didn't know about it

before but it's such a horribly tragic one. Yeah, it's just devastating. So scary and so horrible. I'm glad that Jared's in prison. He's a fucking asshole. Thank you guys for tuning in. Thank you it's just devastating. So scary and so horrible. I'm glad that Jared's in prison. He's a fucking asshole. Thank you guys for tuning in. Thank you for sharing our show. And remember, if you want extra episodes of Going West, head on over to our Patreon. That's patreon.com slash going west podcast. Yeah, I mean, we have 81 episodes, like I said, so if this, if you're all caught up and this

is your most recent episode and you've got nothing to listen to after this. Head on over there and you will have so many and thank you so much in advance. Alright guys, so for everybody out there in the world, don't be a stranger. 1.5% 1.5% 1.5% 1.5% 1.5% 1.5% 1.5% 1.5% 1.5%

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