CEDAR CITY — A Cedar City man accused of firing multiple shots from a handgun during a domestic disturbance on Sept. 30 has been formally charged with attempted murder, among other charges, in connection with the incident.
Brian Peters, 40, remains incarcerated in Iron County Jail without bail after making his initial court appearance last week.
In addition to the first-degree felony charge of attempted murder, Peters also faces two counts of felony discharge of a firearm and one count of aggravated assault, all of which are third-degree felonies.
As previously reported by Cedar City News, Peters was arrested on Sept. 30 after confronting responding SWAT officers in front of a residence in a cul-de-sac near 4250 West and 375 North. Although Peters was reportedly wounded by a responding officer’s gunfire during the incident, he was released from the hospital the following day and subsequently booked into jail.
The probable cause statement filed in support of Peters’ arrest sheds additional light on the events surrounding the incident.
According to the statement, officers were initially dispatched to the residence at 11:40 a.m. after Peters’ father called 911 and said his son was drunk and had tried to shoot him at least twice with a .22-caliber revolver. The father later told police he had been sitting at a computer when he heard a loud bang. An examination of bullet holes found in the wall indicated that the shots had narrowly missed him, the charging document alleges.
Peters also allegedly opened a sliding glass door and fired a shot in the direction of an officer who was helping direct traffic on nearby state Route 56 as it was being closed down in response to the incident.
“There were other vehicles on the highway near the officer’s vehicle and there were homes on the north side of Highway 56 that could have been in the line of fire from this shot,” the document states.
Some time later, after responding officers from multiple agencies had converged on the home and surrounding neighborhood, one officer reportedly was approached by Peters as he exited the residence.
“The officer gave Brian commands to stop and drop the weapon and said he saw the suspect start to raise the weapon,” the statement says. “Brian did not comply with commands and an officer fired rounds at Brian.”
After being hit by gunfire, Peters reportedly retreated into the house and placed the handgun on a chair before going back outside. At that point, he was given medical assistance and transported to the hospital.
Peters made his initial court appearance Oct. 6 before 5th District Judge Matthew L. Bell, but Bell noted during the brief hearing that the case has been assigned to Judge Ann Marie McIff Allen. Defense attorney Matt Munson is representing Peters.
Peters’ next scheduled court date is a waiver hearing on Nov. 9, where a preliminary hearing may either be waived or put on the calendar.
Persons arrested or charged are presumed innocent until found guilty in a court of law or as otherwise decided by a trier-of-fact.
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