More than nine months after a Sandy woman was found dead, the man who police say abandoned her in rural Juab County has been charged with causing her death.
Cody Alexander Young, 41, of Nephi, has been charged in 4th District Court with manslaughter, a second-degree felony; and tampering with evidence, a class A misdemeanor. Jan Pearson-Jenkins, 64, was last seen by her mother on Oct. 4 when she went camping with Young.
According to charging documents, Young left a phone message for Pearson-Jenkins' family on Oct. 5 that the two had argued and “he left her 'out here' and was tired of her.” She was left alone without a cell phone or provisions, and the clothes she was wearing were “unsuitable for the cold, wet weather,” with temperatures dropping into the 30s at night,
Her body was found on Oct. 13. The medical examiner listed her cause of death as “hypothermia, with a contributory condition of recent methamphetamine use.” Pearson-Jenkins “also had notable minor blunt trauma of head, torso, and extremities.”
(Photo courtesy Sandy City Police Department) Jan Pearson-Jenkins
According to police, Young “admitted to officers that” he and Pearson-Jenkin “had used methamphetamine together.” Court documents allege that Young returned to the area where Pearson-Jenkins’ body was found on October 6 and “at no time did Young alert police she was out there.”
Police also reported that sim cards for Pearson-Jenkins phone had been removed and were found in Young's possession.
Young was arrested in on Oct. 13 and charged with drug possession, unlawful possession of a dangerous weapon (both class A misdemeanors) and use or possession of drug paraphernalia (a class B misdemeanor). In November, he pleaded guilty to the charges.
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