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A federal appeals court has upheld decisions that dismissed a lawsuit by the parents of a Ute Indian Tribe member who died after a high speed chase and foot pursuit by state and local officers that crossed onto reservation land.
A panel of justices from the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals on Tuesday upheld the dismissal of the case brought by the parents of 21-year-old Todd R. Murray, ruling that evidence clearly showed he committed suicide and was not shot by a local officer as the lawsuit contended.
Murray had been the passenger of a car that Utah Highway Patrol Officer Dave Swenson attempted to stop on Highway 40 in Uintah County in 2007. After a high speed chase, Murray got out of the car and fled and was pursued by other officers who had arrived at the scene. He died a short time later of a gunshot wound to his head.
Murray's parents, Debra Jones and Arden C. Post, sued the officers, the City of Vernal and Uintah County in 2008 alleging that Vernal police officer Vance Norton had shot Murray in the head. Evidence showed Norton had been 113 yards away when he had fired two rounds and then reported seeing Murray put a gun to his own head and fire.
Tests showed Murray was highly intoxicated and had methamphetamine in his body at the time.
U.S. District Judge Tena Campbell dismissed the lawsuit in March of 2014, saying that evidence showed Murray had committed suicide.
The 10th Circuit agreed in a ruling issued Tuesday.
"The facts could not lead a reasonable jury to conclude that Detective Norton inflicted Murray's fatal wound," the panel wrote in a 35-page decision. "To the contrary, this extensive record could only lead a reasonable jury to conclude that no other person, including Detective Norton, was within 100 yards of Murray when he was shot."
Frances Bassett, a Louisville, Colo., attorney who represented the Murray family, said her clients wanted to get the lawsuit before a jury.
"Naturally, the family is disappointed in a ruling that terminates the case before a trial is even conducted," Bassett said in an email.
The lawsuit also claimed that officers had destroyed or mishandled evidence that could have been used at a trial to prove the parents' claims. The 10th Circuit decision cited "sloppy" evidence handling by the officers, particularly Uintah County Sheriff's Deputy Anthoney Byron who removed Murray's clothing at a local mortuary and took samples from the body that were lost, even sticking his finger into the wound on Murray's head before a medical examiner had an opportunity to conduct an examination.
"Although these acts appear at best sloppy and unorthodox, and at worst suspicious, the district court's denial of sanctions was not an abuse of discretion," the appeals panel wrote.
Jesse Trentadue, a Salt Lake City attorney who represented the local officers, said the lawsuit was less about Murray's death and more about the Ute Tribe's efforts to assert more control over its lands.
"This case was financed by the Ute Tribe, it was brought by the Ute Tribe's attorneys, and the objective was to prevent the State of Utah from enforcing the law and protecting the public in most of eastern Utah," Trentadue said in an email.
Bassett said a decision on an appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court had not been made.