Two men accused of flipping a cop car that was set ablaze and destroyed during a May protest against police violence in downtown Salt Lake City must complete community service after taking a plea deal on Thursday.
Ian Nightingale, 19, and Connor Peebles, 21, were charged with damaging the car during a May 30 protest against racism and police violence.
Peebles and Nightingale were both accused of helping flip the car, and police said Nightingale smashed the car’s rear window with a skateboard.
Salt Lake County prosecutors originally charged both men with a first-degree felony count of criminal mischief — the highest category of crime in Utah, punishable by life in prison — and a third-degree felony count of rioting. The criminal mischief charge, normally just a second-degree felony at its most severe, was increased to a first-degree charge because prosecutors added a gang enhancement to the charges.
Count documents show that 15 people were charged with overturning or otherwise damaging the car.
The plea in abeyance agreement Peebles and Nightingale entered into on Thursday means that prosecutors dismissed the riot charges and that the criminal mischief counts will be reduced to misdemeanors after the men complete community service, Peebles' lawyer Erin Wilson said.
The men were also fined $2,000 and must pass drug screenings, check in regularly with their probation officer and help to pay for the damaged car.
Wilson said the District Attorney’s Office originally took a “hard” approach in the case, but later softened its stance in part because of the public outcry.
He added that he would have liked to see the charges dismissed, not reduced to a misdemeanor, if conditions are met, because Peebles didn’t have a previous criminal record.
An attorney for Nightingale and Salt Lake District Attorney Sim Gill did not return The Salt Lake Tribune’s request for comment.
Clarification: Nov. 5, 8:08 p.m. • A previous headline for this story misstated how the defendants pleaded. They entered a plea in abeyance.