Grief, Sadness Grip Utah County After Murderous Rampage By Truck Driver

A press conference Monday afternoon featured police officers standing at the podium, trying to make sense of the tragic events that happened Sunday morning in the southern part of Utah County.

Here's a recap:

• Early Sunday morning (about 6 a.m.) a citizen called to report a semi truck on the side of the freeway with a man on the back of the truck.
• Santaquin police officer Bill Hooser and a Utah Highway Patrol officer attempted to make contact with the man, who jumped inside his truck and drove away.
• Moments later, the suspect, identified as 42-year-old Michael Aaron Jayne, returned to the scene, driving his semi the wrong direction on the freeway.
• Witnesses say Jayne intentionally crashed into the two police cars, killing Hooser and disabling both cars.
• Jayne then ran off the freeway and stole a vehicle in Santaquin, another one in Mona and a third vehicle in Mt. Pleasant.
• Later Sunday morning (around 11 a.m.) Jayne was ID'd near Vernal and police gave chase.
• Jayne crashed his stolen vehicle around 11:30 a.m. and was taken into custody.
• A shelter-in-place was issued for several cities while the manhunt for Jayne ensued.

A GoFundMe page has been established to raise funds for Hooser's family. The sergeant leaves behind a wife and two children, the youngest of whom is to be married soon, and a new granddaughter.

Hooser had worked in law enforcement for eight years and joined the Santaquin Police Department in 2017. He was promoted to sergeant in February 2024 and was one of just 15 police officers on the Santaquin force.

According to KUTV-2 out of Salt Lake City, Jayne had been previously convicted of a similar crime.

"Officials reported that on March 26, 2009, Michael Aaron Jayne attempted to kill an Oregon State Police officer on State Highway 66 by trying to run him over with his vehicle. Jayne was convicted in 2010 for attempted assault in the first degree and possessing body armor as a felon — he was allegedly wearing a bulletproof vest at the time of the incident. He had pled guilty to both counts in October 2009.

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Sunrise Stories: Santaquin Police Officer Killed in Hit n' Run

KDXU Sunrise Stories: Volume 205 

Statewide News – 05/06/24 

Santaquin Officer Killed in Hit n’ Run 

Residents of Santaquin in Northern Utah are in mourning following the sudden loss of a police officer who was struck and killed by semi-truck on the morning of May 5. The officer was identified as Sgt. Bill Hooser of the Santaquin Police Department.  

The semi-truck driver was believed to be Michael Aaron Jayne, 42. Jayne reportedly killed Sgt. Hooser with the semi after fleeing from a traffic stop. A search ensued throughout most of the morning of May 5 with officers arresting Jayne around 11:30 a.m. 

A police car has been designated as a temporary memorial to Sgt. Hooser with residents placing flowers around the treasured vehicle. Lt. Mike Wall of the SPD said the death of Sgt. Hooser was a senseless act that hurt the officer’s family as well as the entire police department. 

Southern Utah/St. George News – 05/06/24 

18-Year-Old Drowns at Sand Hollow Reservoir 

An 18-year-old boy from Las Vegas unfortunately drowned at Sand Hollow Reservoir on May 5. 

Christian Jeffrey Fisher, 18, and his friends were swimming in the lake when Fisher reportedly went under the water after struggling and never resurfaced. 

Fisher’s friends returned to shore and contacted the authorities as they couldn’t locate the missing teen. Emergency responders found Fisher’s body following two hours of searching the waters, unfortunately confirming the worst. We here at KDXU would like to extend our condolences to the friends and family of Fisher for the loss of such a young life.  

St. George Driver Arrested for Hit n’ Run and DUI 

A driver in St. George is now in custody after he allegedly hit a girl on a scooter and fled from the scene on May 2.  

Joston Stout was arrested following a DUI investigation in Iron County, but he’s also facing charges related to the hit n’ run on May 2 that seriously injured a girl in St. George.  

The girl was transported to St. George Regional Hospital with broken bones and eye-related injuries. Witnesses told officers they saw a blue Dodge Ram truck flee from the scene with the driver later identified as Stout.  

St. George Man Arrested for Allegedly Pointing Gun at Women 

A man who allegedly pointed a gun at women at an apartment complex in St. George is facing multiple charges.  

Reese Kane was arrested after witnesses on the scene told police that Kane pointed a gun at two women and then proceeded to assault one of them. Witnesses also said Kane smashed a car window belonging to one of the tenants.  

Kane called 911 claiming he wasn’t the one who committed the crime, but several witnesses contradicted what he claimed. Kane is now facing multiple charges including aggravated assault. 

Reminder: Roll With Patrol Community Bike Ride 

The St. George Police Department will host their 3rd annual Roll With Patrol community bike ride later today to celebrate National Bike Month. 

The festivities begin at 5:45 p.m. at Crosby Confluence Park with free food and other attractions such as prize drawings and a bike rodeo. The actual 5.3-mile bike ride will start at 6:30 p.m. The Echo Unit of the SGPD is leading the charge around the Mayor’s Loop. 

It’s free to attend and no registration is required to ride along those in blue. More details can be found in our article. 

Other 

Fun fact about Stockton Myers, the writer of Sunrise Stories. 

Despite being obsessed with musical theatre, Stockton isn’t a fan of big crowds inside of a theater. From what he’s come to understand, it’s mostly a mental thing. Stockton gets pretty self-conscious when he attends big events as a member of the audience, but funny enough, he doesn’t have any problem with getting on stage in front of hundreds of people. Kind of weird how it works like that. 

Happy Monday!