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CJ Haynie Murders Family In Utah

CJ Haynie was a sixteen year old teen killer from Utah who would murder his mother and three siblings

According to court documents CJ Haynie also known as Colin Jeffery “CJ” Haynie would plan the murder of his entire family. CJ Haynie would fatally shoot mother Consuelo Alejandra Haynie, 52, his two sisters, Alexis, 15, and Milan 12, and his brother Matthew, 14. CJ would also shoot his father who would survive his injuries

After pleading guilty the now nineteen year old teen killer has learned that he must serve 100 years in prison before he is eligible for release as the judge sentenced him to four consecutive sentences of twenty five years to life

CJ Haynie 2023 Information

CJ Haynie has yet to enter the Utah Department Of Corrections

CJ Haynie News

Colin Jeffery “CJ” Haynie was sentenced Wednesday to four consecutive terms of 25 years to life for shooting his mother and three siblings when he was 16.

The judge sentenced Haynie, 19, to the maximum sentence of 25 years to life for each of the five counts after pleading guilty to the crimes. Four of the counts running consecutively, which is 100 years. The last count running concurrent with the others.

Haynie was just 16 years old in 2020 when he shot and killed his mother Consuelo Alejandra Haynie, 52, his two sisters, Alexis, 15, and Milan 12, and his brother Matthew, 14. Haynie then shot his dad, Colin, but hit him in the leg. His dad then wrestled the gun away.

Haynie shot each of them as they returned home.

“Why? It’s the question that’s been haunting everybody. Why? Well, Jeffrey says I was angry at my father. He said dealing with his father made him anxious, so what does Jeffrey do he decided to kill them all,” said prosecutor Scott Broadhead, as he asked the judge to give Haynie the maximum sentence. “This was not a single incident of mass murder. This wasn’t walking into a school and unloading your gun this was planned, it was methodical it was four separate incidents over a five-hour period.”

That’s why Broadhead said Haynie doesn’t deserve to see the light of day again.

“This is not a rehabilitation case. It’s a punishment case. Someone who murders four people, including three children that he knew and cared about, should never be free,” he said.

In the days following the shootings, Colin Haynie released a statement through his attorney.

“As you can imagine, this loss is almost unbearable,” it stated. “Colin has asked me to express his and the family’s profound appreciation for the support given by friends, extended community, law enforcement, and health care providers. Colin was also wounded on Friday, but he expects to recover fully from those injuries.”

Haynie’s attorney pleaded for mercy, asking the judge to run the sentences concurrently, which would put all five counts at 25 years to life. He played a video of Haynie’s graduation showing how Haynie is a changed person.

“The juvenile has demonstrated maturity and rehabilitation sufficient for a chance at life not behind the prison walls,” said Richard Van Wagoner, Haynie’s attorney.

In a surprising message and reaction, Haynie’s own brother, Danny, who was away at college during the shooting, said all of this could have been avoided had his brother gotten the help he needed, saying his dad, Colin was partially to blame for that.

“He was robbed by not getting proper help. While [Jeffrey] may not blame Colin [his dad] anymore for anything. I do because this could have been prevented. This is something I kept silent for too long,” said Danny Haynie via a conference call in court.

Danny pointed to an incident about a month before the shootings where Jeffrey had a conversation with his mom and said some pretty “dark” things.

“This was clearly a dark enough of a red flag to act on. It wasn’t acted on. The irony now is Jeffrey has ended up in jail, and my family is dead,” Danny said.

Clean cut, well groomed, and dressed in a suit, Jeffrey Haynie did speak before sentencing, saying he hopes people can forgive his actions.

“I can ask for forgiveness for my crimes and my mistakes. I want to make sure that people understand that my mistakes in the past are something I will not do again and I have learned from what I have done,” CJ Haynie said, who showed no emotion at all during the entire court proceedings, even when gruesome pictures of his family members where shown of their murders

Utah man sentenced to 100+ years for killing mother, 3 siblings as a teen

Taylor Frankie Paul Charged With Domestic Violence

Taylor Frankie Paul is a woman from Utah who is best known for her videos on the social media platform TikTok where she basically talks about her family and promotes different products. According to police reports Taylor Frankie Paul and her partner were involved in a heck of a disturbance that ended with someone calling 911.

When police arrived they would separate Taylor Frankie Paul and her partner and in the end determined that Taylor was the primary aggressor. Taylor Frankie Paul would be arrested and has been charged with assault, criminal mischief and domestic violence in the presence of a child.

Taylor Frankie Paul More News

Taylor Frankie Paul, the Mormon MomTok influencer who went viral last year after sharing her “soft-swinging” experiences, was arrested last week, officials said.

Paul, 28, was charged with three misdemeanors: assault, criminal mischief and domestic violence in the presence of a child, according to Salt Lake County Sheriff’s Office records. She was booked by Herriman, Utah, police at 1:56 a.m. on Saturday, records show.

Records also show Paul was released hours after her arrest. Representatives for Paul did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

A spokesperson for the Herriman City Police Department confirmed Paul’s jail booking to NBC News.

“Following her jail booking, detectives received additional video evidence related to this case that resulted in the case being referred to the Salt Lake County District Attorney’s Office for screening of felony assault charges against Ms. Paul,” the spokesperson said. “This evidence also suggests that during the incident, Ms. Paul’s minor child was injured by an action of Ms. Paul. Subsequently, our investigators are also screening a misdemeanor charge of reckless child abuse with the District Attorney’s Office.”

The police department also shared a news release about the incident on Twitter.

The Herriman City Police Department said in its statement: “Once the screening process is complete with the District Attorney’s Office, the case will proceed through the criminal justice system in either the Third District Court or the Herriman City Justice Court, depending on the decisions rendered during the screening process.”

Paul is a popular TikTok influencer with 4 million followers who rose to prominence as part of the Mormon mom community on the platform.

Last May, she went viral after revealing in a TikTok livestream that she and her then-husband, Tate Paul, were in a soft-swinging group with other MomTok creators, meaning they swapped sexual partners with other couples, but Paul said they agreed to not “go all the way.” Paul said that she “did step out of that agreement,” leading to her divorce and a few lost friendships.

In recent months, Paul has been open about her mental health struggles following her divorce, the soft-swinging fallout and a pregnancy loss she experienced with her boyfriend last year

Mom influencer Taylor Frankie Paul arrested and charged with assault and domestic violence, officials say (nbcnews.com)

Taylor Frankie Paul Other News

A Utah TikTok star with more than four million followers is facing charges after a domestic violence incident at a home in Herriman.

Taylor Frankie Paul, 28, was arrested and charged with one count of assault, one count of criminal mischief and one count of domestic violence in the presence of a child.

In addition, Herriman police said they are screening a misdemeanor charge of reckless child abuse following additional video evidence brought forward in the case.

A probable cause statement for Paul states that a neighbor called the police after they heard screaming and yelling coming from the home.

When police arrived at the home and began questioning Paul and the victim, police observed Paul “lunge at the victim and began pushing/hitting him.”

The individuals were separated and police identified Paul as the aggressor in the situation.

During an investigation, police learned the situation stemmed from an argument in which Paul “hit the victim multiple times and threw several household objects at him, including metal chairs and a wooden child playset,” court documents state.

The victim, who was not identified by police, complained of elbow pain following the incident, arresting documents state.

Paul’s child was in the home at the time of the argument and police said in a press release that a minor child was injured “by an action of Ms. Paul.”

Further details about the injury and the condition of the child were not made available.

Herriman police also explained that Paul’s status as a social media influencer will have “no bearing or impact on the investigation or outcome of the case.”

“All allegations of domestic violence are investigated thoroughly and in accordance with state law and established criminal justice best practices to protect victims and ensure accountability,” a statement reads in part.

Utah social media influencer arrested for assault, domestic violence (fox13now.com)

Brenda Emile and Eric Miller Costello Murder 3 Year Old

Brenda Emile and Eric Miller Costello are a couple from Utah who would murder their three year old daughter. According to court documents Brenda Emile and Eric Miller Costello would torture and starve to death three year old Angelina Costello. There was video shown in court showing Brenda Emile and Eric Miller Costello taunting the little girl with food as she slowly starved to death. An autopsy would reveal a horrific assortment of injuries both new and old. To avoid the death penalty Brenda Emile and Eric Miller Costello would plead guilty to first-degree felony aggravated murder in order to avoid the death penalty. The pair were each sentenced to life in prison without parole

Brenda Emile and Eric Miller Costello More News

Saying he “sees the hand of evil” in the torture and starvation murder of 3-year-old Angelina Costello, Judge Michael DiReda on Friday sentenced the toddler’s parents, Miller Eric Costello and Brenda Emile, to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

Calling the pair “monsters,” the 2nd District Court judge at times appeared to choke up as he explained his reasoning for imposing the harshest sentence available rather than the other option allowed by state law, 25 years to life in prison.

Costello, 30, and Emile, 28, pleaded guilty last year to first-degree felony aggravated murder, thereby avoiding a potential death sentence. Angelina died on July 6, 2017, after what police and prosecutors said was more than a year of beatings, burns and other abuse while the parents starved the girl, taunting her with food and recording many incidents on their phones.

The parents appeared to react stoically to the sentences. They were seated at opposite ends of a long defense table in an Ogden courtroom after attorneys had warned that there were security concerns. In an outburst during the first day of the sentencing hearing last week, Emile stood and shouted something at Costello.

DiReda began the sentencing Friday by quoting Martin Luther King Jr.: “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.”

The judge said the law requires him to consider “the totality of circumstances” and impose a “proportionate” penalty.

DiReda then quoted from the autopsy report. He said Angelina suffered blunt-force injuries to her head, torso and extremities; significant head and neck injuries; internal bleeding; organ damage; the traumatic chipping of teeth; and deep burns to her chest and abdomen. Cigarette burns “all over her little body” melted the skin, the judge said.

Turning to Emile, the judge said he did not find her to be “credible in any respect.” Raised in a Romani culture “to manipulate and take advantage of people,” Emile “will say and do anything to benefit herself,” he said.

He quoted from Emile’s initial police interview, in which she “acted surprised” that Angelina had died. She was normal, she was healthy, Emile said. “These statements are astonishing, reflective of the dishonesty and lack of accountability,” the judge said.

In Costello’s first police interview, he said he “knew Angelina was going to die,” the judge said. “He knew it was the right thing to do but he didn’t do it,” the judge said Costello told officers.

Angelina was starved over many months, routinely teased and taunted with food, and Costello “used his phone to video this horrific psychological torture,” DiReda said.

Costello minimized his involvement and blamed Emile, “but like Brenda, he is not credible,” the judge said.

Costello underwent intellectual testing and doctors concluded he has a low IQ, but DiReda said he gave little weight to that evidence “when it comes to the crime” because Costello was functional in his life, working and otherwise performing familial and community roles. The judge also said one of the doctors noted that Costello made a “suboptimal effort on cognitive testing.”

DiReda referred to a letter submitted by the adoptive mother of Angelina’s older brother. The boy remains deeply traumatized, she said.

The boy, who was 4 when Angelina died, “was instructed to strike Angelina and was praised for it,” the judge said. “This was uniquely cruel and psychologically devastating to Angelina.”

In his decades in the criminal justice system, DiReda said he “has never seen this level of depravity and evil.” It was the “ultimate betrayal” of a child and the judge said he “sees the hand of evil” in the parents’ actions.

“She just deserved to be held in her parents’ arms, to be loved and protected,” he said. “Instead she was dehumanized and tortured by monsters.”

DiReda said neither defendant “has shown remorse or taken responsibility, and that speaks loudly to me. The people who mourn Angelina the most are a bunch of strangers who only got to know her after she died.”

In hearings last week, the court heard witnesses describe claims that one or both of the parents believed Angelina was “cursed” because she had been born prematurely, and that Emile said while pregnant that she did not want the baby and increased her level of smoking.

https://www.standard.net/police-fire/courts/2023/feb/03/judge-sees-hand-of-evil-in-toddlers-murder-sentences-parents-to-life-without-parole/

Michael Haight Kills 7 in Utah Murder Suicide

Michael Haight has been identified by police in Utah as the person responsible for killing seven family members before taking his own life. According to police reports a wellness check was done on the Haight family who lived in Enoch City and officers would find eight people dead including the five Haight children. Police would later identify the deceased as Tausha Haight, 40, and Tausha’s mother, 78-year-old Gail Earl. The other five victims were identified as the shooting suspect’s children: a 17-year-old girl, 12-year-old girl, 7-year-old girl, 7-year-old boy and a 4-year-old boy. Police believe the murder suicide was due to Tausha Haight plan on filing for divorce from Michael Haight.

Michael Haight More News

A Utah man fatally shot his family of seven in a home Wednesday and then turned the gun on himself, authorities said.

According to a statement from Enoch City in southwestern Utah, Michael Haight, 42, his wife; Tausha Haight, 40, and Tausha’s mother; 78-year-old Gail Earl, were discovered dead at the home on North Albert Drive. Also dead were the couple’s five minor children, ranging in ages from 4 to 17.

The statement described Michael Haight as a “suspect.”

Officials at a media briefing said Tausha Haight had filed a divorce petition in late December. But they stopped short of saying that was a motive.

“While this intense investigation is ongoing, investigators currently believe there are no suspects outstanding. Evidence suggests that the suspect took his own life after killing seven others in the home,” the statement said.

The minor children were only identified by their ages and genders as a 17-year-old female, a 12-year-old female, a 7-year-old female, a 7-year-old male, and a 4-year-old male.

Police were called to the home at about 4 p.m. for a welfare check by concerned family and friends, the Thursday statement said.

Enoch City is about 180 miles northeast of Las Vegas.

During a news conference Thursday, Enoch City Mayor Geoffrey Chestnut said the incident has shaken the tight-knit community of about 7,500 residents.

“The Haights were my neighbors. The youngest children played in my yard with my sons,” an emotional Chestnut said. “This is a tremendous blow to many, many families who have spent many, many nights with these individuals who are now gone.”

“We don’t know why this happened. No one will probably know what was going through the minds of these individuals,” City Manager Rob Dotson said Thursday. “However, we do know that they were our friends, they were our neighbors and that we loved them.”

At the media briefing, Enoch City Police Chief Jackson Ames said police had been involved with some investigations with the family a couple years prior, but declined to elaborate.

Officials said a welfare check was prompted by Tausha Haight missing an appointment Wednesday.

The Iron County School District said the five children were students there, according to a letter that was addressed to district parents and guardians.

“This loss is sure to raise many emotions, concerns, and questions for our entire school district, especially our students,” the letter said.

The district added that a crisis intervention team would be available for students.

On Twitter, Utah Gov. Spencer Cox called the violence “senseless” and asked people to keep Enoch in their prayers

Haight’s relatives could not be immediately reached Thursday. Neighbors were also not reached.

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/father-identified-suspect-murder-suicide-utah-family-8-rcna64457

Michael Haight Other News

Eight people from one family, including five children, were found shot to death inside a southern Utah home Wednesday afternoon in an apparent murder-suicide, officials announced Thursday.

The children’s father, 42-year-old Michael Haight, is suspected of killing the children; his wife, 40-year-old Tausha Haight; and Tausha’s mother, 78-year-old Gail Earl, before killing himself, officials said.

The children were identified by age Thursday as a 17-year-old girl, a 12-year-old girl, a 7-year-old girl, a 7-year-old boy and a 4-year-old boy, according to a news release from Enoch City.

On Wednesday, police were asked to check on the family at their home on the 4900 North block of Albert Drive, where they found Michael Haight and the seven victims dead inside at around 4 p.m.

“Each appeared to have sustained gunshot wounds,” officials said

According to court records, Tausha had petitioned for divorce from Michael in December.

Enoch is home to about 8,000 people, located about 7 miles northeast of Cedar City in Iron County. Late Wednesday, Enoch City Manager Rob Dotson said the community was reeling after news of the family’s deaths, all of whom were well-known in the town.

“Many of us have served with them in church, in the community and gone to school with these individuals,” Dotson said Wednesday night.

In a statement Thursday, city officials said they join “all who are deeply saddened by this tragic incident and want to express our condolences to the family and friends of the victims.”

Each of the children killed attended public school in Iron County, according to the Iron County School District. The district sent an email to parents and guardians Wednesday about the “tragic loss.”

“This loss is sure to raise many emotions, concerns, and questions for our entire school district, especially our students,” a district statement read.

Thursday morning was “very difficult” for both students and staff at local schools, said Iron County School District spokeswoman Shauna Lund.

“It’s a small community,” Lund said, “and schools become families. These students go through school together, get to know one another very well.”

Lund added that there were “a lot of emotions, even in schools these students didn’t attend, just because so many people knew them.”

The district’s crisis intervention team was dispatched to Iron County schools Thursday, and counseling will be available to students, parents and school personnel “who may need or want help or assistance surrounding this loss,” according to the district.

Schools are working with other groups in the community, including Southwest Behavioral Health, to set up a community crisis center where people can get help “even after school hours,” Lund said, as well as for those who don’t have access to help through the school district.

Counseling will be available “as long as we see the need,” Lund continued.

In a tweet, Gov. Spencer Cox asked Utahns to “keep the community of Enoch in your prayers.” Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson tweeted that she is “praying for the community of Enoch tonight.”

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre on Thursday also shared that President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden “are mourning with the Enoch City, Utah community in the wake of a tragic shooting that has reportedly claimed the lives of five children and multiple adults in their family home.”

More details on the killings were not immediately available as of Thursday morning.

https://www.sltrib.com/news/2023/01/05/8-found-fatally-shot-utah-home/

Jared Leisek Adventures With Purpose Charged With Child Rape

Jared Leisek one of the founders of Adventures With Purpose has been charged with two counts of child rape that allegedly took place in the 1990’s. According to police reports Jared Leisek is accused of sexually assaulting a 9 to 10 year old female in the child’s bedroom and later at their grandparents home. Jared Leisek was seven years older than the victim when the sexual assaults occurred. Adventures With Purpose is an organisation that searches for missing people in an underwater setting. The group which has been credited with solving a number of cold cases over the years did not have any comment regarding Jared Leisek.

Jared Leisek More News

Jared Leisek, who helped start the lauded missing person search group Adventures with Purpose, was charged last week with two counts of rape of a child, records show.

Leisek is accused of abusing a female relative, who was between 9 and 10 years old, according to Utah court documents obtained by Law&Crime. The incidents allegedly occurred in 1992. Leisek was seven years older than the victim at the time, authorities said.

“Just before November 1, 1992, the victim lived in Ephraim, which is located in Sanpete County,” wrote Deputy County Attorney Arek E. Butler.

In one incident, Leisek allegedly raped the child in her bedroom. He abused her again when they were at their grandparents’ home in the city of Manti, Utah, that same year, documents stated.

Leisek has no attorney of record. Adventures with Purpose referred The Law&Crime Network’s Sidebar podcast to their legal team when asked about the allegations against Leisek. They did not immediately respond to a Law&Crime follow up request for comment on Tuesday. The Sanpete County Attorney’s Office did not immediately respond to a Law&Crime request for more information. The U.S. Sun first reported the allegations.

Adventures with Purpose is a volunteer dive team that works to help solve missing person cases. Deputies in Pope County, Arkansas, credited the group with finding Samantha Jean Hoppers’ blue Ford Tempo submerged in about eight feet of water. The 20-year-old and her daughter Courtney Holt, 1, disappeared in 1998.

They also found missing man James “Jimmy” Amabile, 38, who was submerged at a Pennsylvania marine in his SUV since 2003.

More recently, the group discovered missing California teen Kiely Mai Rodni, 16, in her SUV under 14 feet of water in a reservoir.

“She’s in the back of the vehicle,” diver Nick Rinn said upon returning topside. “She’s not in the driver’s seat. It looks suspicious to me. The vehicle’s upside down, some of the — one window’s halfway down. One window is all the way down.”

Investigators said Rodni died in an accidental drowning after she attended a massive party at the Prosser Lake Campground.

Lead diver Doug Bishop told FOX affiliates in a May 9 profile that Adventures with Purpose was an environmentalist group, with Leisek working to clean up waterways.

“His efforts led to a vehicle being discovered underwater here in the city of Portland, Oregon,” Bishop said. “Then he started focusing on just pulling vehicles out.”

Leisek and a Bishop, a towing company owner, teamed up to take out vehicles to clean up the water, but one of those vehicles ending up containing human remains. From there, the men found their niche

“Little did we know it … we’re working in a gray area that’s not really being done,” Bishop said.

They did not plan on this, he said.

“I guess there is something there that’s extra in the universe that has guided us together on this journey to help mend families,” Bishop said. “We’re just good guys trying to do good in the world.”

Jared Leisek’s initial appearance is set for Nov. 30, records show.

Adventures with Purpose Founder Charged with Raping a Child in Alleged 1992 Incidents