Episodes
![The Taberon Honie Death Sentence Case](https://pbcdn1.podbean.com/imglogo/image-logo/13790609/Screen_Shot_2022-04-26_at_1_59_23_PM_e6v6pq_300x300.png)
Wednesday Jul 17, 2024
The Taberon Honie Death Sentence Case
Wednesday Jul 17, 2024
Wednesday Jul 17, 2024
In this edition of Legally Speaking, we examine the legal issues surrounding Taberon Honie’s death sentence, which is set to be carried out August 8, 2024.
Honie has been on Utah’s Death Row for 25 years. In June 2024, he made one last plea for clemency with the Board of Pardons and Parole, but other than that, his death warrant has been signed and his execution set for August 8. We’ll update the case as of July 17, 2024.
Background on this case: In 1999, Honie was convicted of the extremely violent murder of his girlfriend’s mother, Claudia Benn, in Cedar City. Benn was viciously and repeatedly stabbed, to the point of mutilation. Honie was arrested at the scene, confessing: “I stabbed her. I killed her with a knife.” Benn’s three granddaughters were present during the murder, all had blood on them, and a four-year-old was sexually assaulted.
Graphic details set the stage for our conversation with Daniel Boyer, Assistant Solicitor General in the AG’s Office Criminal Appeals Division.
![BLM Public Lands Rule Sparks NEPA Lawsuit from Utah and Wyoming](https://pbcdn1.podbean.com/imglogo/image-logo/13790609/Screen_Shot_2022-04-26_at_1_59_23_PM_e6v6pq_300x300.png)
Friday Jul 12, 2024
BLM Public Lands Rule Sparks NEPA Lawsuit from Utah and Wyoming
Friday Jul 12, 2024
Friday Jul 12, 2024
Utah and Wyoming are teaming up to sue the BLM for skipping a step in the process before it imposed a rule that significantly impacts the management of millions of acres of federal land, and restricts your use of those lands.
On this edition of the Legally Speaking podcast, we discuss the implications of this lawsuit with Assistant Attorney General Jason DeForest.
The BLM rule in question severely restricts access in the interest of conservation, according to the agency. Utah and Wyoming argue the new rule was implemented illegally. The states say BLM didn’t comply with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), which requires a study of the environmental effects of new rules on federal land.
Not only that, the AGO says the BLM exceeded its authority and limits access to 245 million acres of federal public land, including 22.8 million acres in Utah.
![Protecting Utah’s Environment: How the AG’s Office Supports Enforcement of State Environmental Quality Standards](https://pbcdn1.podbean.com/imglogo/image-logo/13790609/Screen_Shot_2022-04-26_at_1_59_23_PM_e6v6pq_300x300.png)
Friday Jul 05, 2024
Friday Jul 05, 2024
Utah State law protects Utahns from excess pollution, unsafe conditions and more—and the Attorney General’s Office helps enforce those rules.
When it comes to preserving safe, healthy air, water and land, the Division of Environmental Quality has a big job. Most of the time, any violation of the rules is caught, noted, and remedied quickly. But when it keeps happening, that’s when the legal process starts and the AG’s office gets involved.
The process is an interesting one, and we learn more about it in our Legally Speaking conversation with Marina Thomas, Director of our Environmental Section.
Marina oversees air quality specifically, but the process is the same for water, radiation control, drinking water and hazardous waste.
![AGO Victory: Limits to Extreme Emotional Defense](https://pbcdn1.podbean.com/imglogo/image-logo/13790609/Screen_Shot_2022-04-26_at_1_59_23_PM_e6v6pq_300x300.png)
Tuesday Jul 02, 2024
AGO Victory: Limits to Extreme Emotional Defense
Tuesday Jul 02, 2024
Tuesday Jul 02, 2024
In this Legally Speaking edition, we speak with Assistant Solicitor General Karen Klucznik about the recent State v. Smith Appeals Court victory.
The Utah Court of Appeals recently ruled in favor of the Utah Attorney General’s Office, and on behalf of victims, by setting limits to the widely-used Extreme Emotional Distress defense in murder cases.
It’s taken more than a decade for this case to work through the Utah legal process. With the help of recent legislation, new standards apply about when a defendant can say in court that they 'lost control' and shouldn't face the maximum penalty because they reacted violently to a situation.
This case centers on Daniel Smith, a husband who shot his wife seven times - 25 minutes after she told him she wanted a divorce and was leaving him. He said he was traumatized and shot his wife in an emotional haze. So, he wanted to claim an extreme emotional distress defense that would have lowered a murder conviction to manslaughter. Based on the case facts, the trial court denied the defense. The Utah Court of Appeals recently affirmed the trial court’s ruling and Smith’s murder conviction.
The bottom line is, because of the statutory changes to the EED defense and the court of appeals’ ruling, defendants who kill their intimate partners when their partners try to leave may find they are less able to use the extreme emotional defense as a mitigating factor, due to the timeline, level of violence, and other factors.
Assistant SG Klucznik has argued extreme emotional distress cases for many years and joins us now to examine the implications of the Appeals Court ruling.
![Children's Justice Centers: An Inside Look - Part 2](https://pbcdn1.podbean.com/imglogo/image-logo/13790609/Screen_Shot_2022-04-26_at_1_59_23_PM_e6v6pq_300x300.png)
Thursday Jun 13, 2024
Children's Justice Centers: An Inside Look - Part 2
Thursday Jun 13, 2024
Thursday Jun 13, 2024
Utah’s Children’s Justice Centers are in nearly every county in the state and are a safe place for abused children to talk about and provide evidence regarding what they’ve been through. These CJCs look like residential homes to provide a comfortable, secure environment for interviewing young victims of violent crime.
The Utah Attorney General’s Office oversees the state’s CJCs, designed as important “safe houses.” There, specially trained investigators help children talk about what they’ve been through as part of an ongoing investigation. What they say can be used in court. It’s a compassionate way to deal with the dispassionate prosecution of a criminal case.
In Part 1, we spoke to the CJC's Deputy Director, Heather Stewart. In this Legally Speaking episode, Part 2, we hear from Matthew Janzen from the Davis County Attorney’s Office about the CJC's importance there.
![Children's Justice Centers: An Inside Look - Part 1](https://pbcdn1.podbean.com/imglogo/image-logo/13790609/Screen_Shot_2022-04-26_at_1_59_23_PM_e6v6pq_300x300.png)
Tuesday Jun 04, 2024
Children's Justice Centers: An Inside Look - Part 1
Tuesday Jun 04, 2024
Tuesday Jun 04, 2024
Utah’s Children’s Justice Centers are in nearly every county in the state and are a safe place for abused children to talk about and provide evidence regarding what they’ve been through. These CJCs look like residential homes to provide a comfortable, secure environment for interviewing young victims of violent crime.
The Utah Attorney General’s Office oversees the state’s CJCs, designed as important “safe houses.” There, specially trained investigators help children talk about what they’ve been through as part of an ongoing investigation. What they say can be used in court.
It’s a compassionate way to deal with the dispassionate prosecution of a criminal case. In this special two-part Legally Speaking, we first speak to the CJC’s Deputy Director, Heather Stewart, who loves to educate people about it. In part two, we will hear from Matthew Janzen from the Davis County Attorney’s Office about the CJC's importance there.
![VirTra Simulated Training: A Closer Look](https://pbcdn1.podbean.com/imglogo/image-logo/13790609/Screen_Shot_2022-04-26_at_1_59_23_PM_e6v6pq_300x300.png)
Thursday May 16, 2024
VirTra Simulated Training: A Closer Look
Thursday May 16, 2024
Thursday May 16, 2024
Intense—immersive—realistic.
VirTra training can put you into dicey situations that result in lethal force, or not. The Utah Attorney General’s Office is proud to employ VIRTRA training. It is realistic training with situations police officers face daily, which are not easy.
It’s an exciting tool that uses giant screens, intense surround sound, and a real-but-disabled handgun. Different situations play out on the screens as the trainee, playing the part of a police officer, moves around and shouts commands—trying to diffuse what’s occurring without using their weapon.
Sometimes it works, and sometimes it doesn’t.
Join us on this Legally Speaking episode as we dive deeper into VirTra training with Will Fowlke, the Training Center Director for the Investigations Division.
![Ridd Case: Roomate Assaulted by a Virus](https://pbcdn1.podbean.com/imglogo/image-logo/13790609/Screen_Shot_2022-04-26_at_1_59_23_PM_e6v6pq_300x300.png)
Friday May 10, 2024
Ridd Case: Roomate Assaulted by a Virus
Friday May 10, 2024
Friday May 10, 2024
Poisoning a best friend and roommate. This podcast is a case study in the prosecution of a woman charged with poisoning her roommate in Millcreek, Utah.
In 2019, the Utah Attorney General’s office worked with federal authorities to convict Janie Lynn Ridd of abuse and possession of a biological agent. Charges state that Ridd purchased a Staphylococcus strain and gave it to her roommate over time. That roommate was supposed to be her best friend.
It’s a case the Attorney General’s office worked on with the U.S. Department of Justice. The case was prosecuted by Assistant Attorney General Michael Gadd, who commented on the case for Legally Speaking.
![Image](https://mcdn.podbean.com/mf/web/xmtr2j/AG_Logo_-_Original_2541363cb-3448-17ce-9bd9-3baf02bddb6f.jpg)
Legally Speaking
Welcome to Legally Speaking, a podcast for those who want quick and summarized information on important issues and cases the state is handling. Our format is meant to be easier to understand than a court document or technical argument. As Utah’s largest public law firm, we will address topics from a legal point of view—information you won’t get anywhere else.