Originally charged with attempted murder and aggravated burglary, both first-degree felonies, Bailey A. Chase, 21, agreed in 2nd District Court to admit instead to a charge of second-degree felony aggravated assault, aiding and abetting. In return, Weber County prosecutors dropped the burglary charge.

Chase and her cousin, Dario Deland Muniz, 31, were arrested after they allegedly went into the apartment of the 33-year-old victim. Arrest warrants said Muniz allegedly hit the victim with a rifle and then shot him. The victim and Chase had argued in the parking lot earlier, police said. Chase and the victim had been in a relationship.

The victim was shot in the abdomen and underwent emergency surgery, later telling police details of the confrontation, which happened at an apartment complex in the 600 North block of Evergreen Way.

As part of the deal, defense attorneys and prosecutors resolved two other cases against Chase. A shoplifting case was dismissed and Chase pleaded guilty to a reduced charge of second-degree felony robbery in a February 2020 incident in which she lured a man into a carjacking near the Weber County Fairgrounds.

Defense attorney Emily Swenson sought to have the plea bargain treated as a Rule 11 agreement, meaning the terms are binding on the judge. In this case, there would be no prison time meted out at sentencing, she said.

Judge Joseph Bean said he would not accept a Rule 11 bargain and Chase decided to go ahead with the guilty pleas anyway. A second-degree felony conviction calls for a prison term of 1 to 15 years in prison, although judges have the flexibility to suspend sentences and instead order the defendant to serve some time in the county jail.

Bean set sentencing for Oct. 7 and authorized a pre-sentence report by Utah Adult Probation and Parole.

Muniz also appeared in court Thursday, but his case was continued until Sept. 2. He is charged with attempted murder and aggravated burglary.

Muniz has written several letters to the court seeking leniency from Bean.

“I want you to know that I’m trying to leave Utah for good,” Muniz told Bean in an Aug. 13 letter. He said he has family in Nevada and he could work in the mines near Elko. “I’m ready to leave Ogden. This hasn’t been the best place for me and my family.”

If Bean will keep him out of prison, Muniz said, “You will never hear the last name Muniz again. We will be gone.”

Muniz has been held without bail in the Weber County Jail since his arrest.