This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2015, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
An Iron County jury on Thursday found a Cedar City man guilty of shooting and killing two people in his home in 2013.
Thad Robertson, 56, was found guilty of two counts of aggravated murder for the February 2013 deaths of Diann Bailey, 59, and Jeffrey Lane Hardy, 52.
Robertson also was convicted of charges of second-degree felony possession of a controlled substance, third-degree felony possession of a firearm by a restricted person and a misdemeanor count of possession of drug paraphernalia.
Robertson faces up to life in prison when he is sentenced on Aug. 7 by 5th District Judge G. Michael Westfall.
Charging documents state that on Feb. 16, 2013, a California woman called Cedar City police to report that her father, Robertson, had called her to tell her he was suicidal, had "done something stupid and could not go to prison," according to the charges.
Robertson also told his daughter that "a gun was used as a scare tactic and as a result he had shot least one and possibly two subjects," the charges add.
Officers arrived at the home, located at 386 N. 400 West, to find Robertson as he was leaving. Inside the home, police found Hardy's body — he had been shot twice — and Bailey, suffering from a gunshot wound to the head. She was taken to the hospital and later died.
The Spectrum newspaper in St. George reported that prosecutors claim Robertson shot the two because he was upset about a possible affair between the two victims. However, defense attorney Douglas Terry argued at trial that there was no evidence the shootings were intentional.
According to Utah court records, all three of the people involved in the shooting case have lived at the Cedar City home at one time or another: Robertson has lived there since 2006, Bailey listed it as her address in 2007, and Hardy was living there in 2011.
In July 2007, Bailey filed for a protective order against Robertson, but two weeks later asked a judge to dismiss it, according to court records.
— The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Twitter: @jm_miller