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Relatives of slain Utah teens call for death penalty

(Evan Cobb | Daily Herald file photo) Jerrod William Baum waits for the special setting waiver hearing at the 4th District Court on Wednesday, Aug. 1, 2018, in Provo. Baum is charged with killing two teenagers and dumping their bodies in an abandoned mine shaft.

Provo • Relatives of two Utah teenagers who were killed and dumped in an abandoned mine shaft are calling for prosecutors to pursue the death penalty against the man charged in their deaths.

Jerrod Baum pleaded not guilty Monday to aggravated murder and other charges in the deaths of 17-year-old Brelynne "Breezy" Otteson and 18-year-old Riley Powell.

Relatives of the victims said they were not surprised by the plea.

“We knew a long time ago he was going to plead not guilty,” Bill Powell, Riley Powell’s father, told KSL-TV. “He’s that kind of person. He won’t own up to what he did. He’s a chicken.”

The teens were missing for nearly three months before their bodies were found in the mine shaft near Eureka in March 2018.

Morgan Henderson testified earlier this year that Baum, 42, stabbed the two teens after tying them up and driving them to the mine. Her former boyfriend was upset that the teens had visited her, she said. She pleaded guilty to 10 counts of obstruction of justice and agreed to cooperate with authorities.

(Rick Bowmer | AP file photo) In this April 7, 2018, file photo, a reward poster is shown at a funeral service for Brelynne "Breezy" Otteson, 17, and boyfriend Riley Powell, 18, in Eureka, Utah. Prosecutors say an enraged man killed the teenage couple after they visited his girlfriend despite his warning her not to have male visitors. He dumped their bodies in the mine shaft, where they remained for nearly three months before being discovered in March.

Bill Powell and Amanda Hunt, the aunt of Otteson, said they want prosecutors to seek the death penalty.

"Their lives were taken from them, and he shouldn't get the right to be able to live," Hunt said.

Utah County Attorney David Leavitt said the death penalty is a possibility, but prosecutors are still examining evidence and factors in the case. The family will be factored into the decision, he said.

"Really, what the family wants is to have their family members back," Leavitt told the Daily Herald . "That will never happen. They know that, and we're forming a very good relationship between the police, the prosecution team and the families."

Baum is scheduled to appear in court for a pretrial hearing on Aug. 12.


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