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Gang enhancements may be dropped from woman’s Riverdale murder case

By Mark Shenefelt - | Nov 16, 2021

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OGDEN — A defense attorney has filed a motion to reduce charges against a woman accused of acting as the getaway driver in a 2020 Christmas Day home invasion and fatal shooting.

Randall Marshall’s motion in 2nd District Court contends that gang enhancements no longer apply to the case of Brittany Ann Rogers because of a change to state law by the Utah Legislature earlier this year.

Under the old law, a person acting as part of a criminal street gang, or working in concert with two other people, was subject to enhanced penalties. But the new statute applies an enhancement only to those working with three or more other people. Rogers has two co-defendants.

Rogers, Liam Gale and Rayburn Bennett Jr. are charged in the Christmas morning death of Trevor Anthony Martin in Riverdale. Charging documents allege the two men barged into Martin’s trailer, fatally shot him and severely wounded his girlfriend, while Rogers allegedly waited outside.

All three are charged with aggravated robbery, aggravated burglary, aggravated assault and obstructing justice. The two men are charged with aggravated murder and Rogers is charged with murder, a non-death-penalty offense. Gale also faces two weapons charges.

Because of the gang enhancement, all charges against Rogers are first-degree felonies, but according to the new state law, some of the charges could be reduced to second-degree felonies if the judge agrees with Marshall’s motion.

Non-capital first-degree felonies are punishable by five years to life in prison, while second-degree felonies draw a term of one to 15 years.

Prosecutors have not yet filed a response to the motion. In a hearing Monday afternoon, Judge Camille Neider said she would schedule the next pretrial hearing for the defendants on about Jan. 20, to give attorneys and the judge time to resolve the gang enhancement matter.

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