OGDEN — The husband of the Highland Junior High School art teacher killed last November in what officials said at the time was an accidental shooting has been charged with manslaughter in the incident.

Christopher Trivino, 28, faces a single count of manslaughter, a second-degree felony, in the shooting death of his wife, Jaycelin Trivino, inside their home on Nov. 19, 2022, according to charging documents. The charge was initially filed last Friday in 2nd District Court in Ogden by the Weber County Attorney’s Office and Christopher Trivino was to be booked into the Weber County Jail on Tuesday before release on $10,000 bail.

According to the probable cause statement in the case, Christopher Trivino awoke from sleeping the evening of Nov. 19, 2022, thinking he heard the home alarm system go off. He saw “a dark figure approaching his bed,” grabbed an unholstered gun that he regularly slept with and fired.

“After Chris discharged his firearm, Jaycelin immediately screamed and Chris knew that the dark figure was his wife,” reads the probable cause statement. “Chris reported to law enforcement that Jaycelin is known to, at times, wake up in the middle of the night to use the bathroom or get a drink of water.”

Christopher Trivino said it was “too dark to see” and that the figure approaching, his wife, did not say anything. About three seconds elapsed between the time he thought he heard the alarm go off and the time he fired his gun. Jaycelin Trivino, who went by Jaycee, was struck in the abdomen.

Turns out the alarm at their home in the 3100 block of Adams Avenue, a Ring system, “did not show any alarm trips during or before the time frame of the shooting,” according to the affidavit. Furthermore, according to the statement, family members said Christopher Trivino had at times shown reckless behavior in the handling of guns.

“Persons related to this case stated that Chris regularly carries his firearm, shows it off, brags about it and has openly left it unattended and unsecure at family events. He also did not store or keep the firearm in a secure lock box or safe,” according to the affidavit. “Family members report that they had spoken with Chris before about the dangers of his recklessness with firearms.”

Jaycelin Trivino’s death caused an outpouring of grief from friends and family. A celebration of life for her was held Feb. 4 at Peery’s Egyptian Theater in Ogden.

She was an arts and ceramics teacher at Highland Junior High in Ogden and showed “an aptitude for dancing, tumbling and creating amazing artwork” from a young age, according to her obituary. She had attended Weber High School and Weber State University.

Conditions of Christopher Trivino’s release, presuming he posts bail, call for him to report to the Weber County Jail reporting center twice a week, refrain from possessing a firearm or other dangerous weapon and more.

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