ST. GEORGE — Both sides battled it out during a preliminary hearing Monday in the case involving a driver who reportedly struck and killed two cyclists in Washington City last month.
The preliminary hearing unfolded before District Judge G. Michael Westfall in the case of Julie Ann Budge, 47, who faces two second-degree felony counts of automobile homicide, criminal negligence – DUI of alcohol/drugs, as well as two third-degree felony counts of leaving the scene of an accident involving death.
The charges stem from an April 9 incident in which two men died after they were struck by a red 2004 Toyota Highlander that was found several hundred yards west of where the incident occurred. The men had been bicycling near the intersection of Coral Canyon Boulevard and Telegraph Street in Washington City,
The two men killed were brothers participating in the annual Spring Tour of St. George bicycle ride, along with their sons, both of whom were trailing behind when their fathers were struck.
Budge told responding officers she had several health issues and needed medical attention, adding she was on a number of medications, according to charging documents filed with the courts. Budge also said she had irritable bowel syndrome and began defecating on herself shortly before the incident, causing her to swerve toward the side of the road.
The report says she claimed she did not see the two cyclists stopped on the shoulder and struck both riders when she swerved.
During Monday’s hearing, Budge was represented by Lindsay Jarvis, an attorney out of West Jordan, while the state was represented by Prosecutor Zachary Weiland.
The families of both men were present in the gallery during the hearing.
Jarvis opened by asking the court to postpone the preliminary hearing, citing the defense had yet to be provided the bodycam footage capturing the questioning of her client, as well as other footage captured by multiple officers at the scene who were all equipped with body cameras.
Jarvis also asked for more time to arrange for a medical expert to testify at the preliminary hearing and time to review the bodycam footage so she could better prepare for the proceedings.
Weiland said he had sent the defense everything they had, and that while the bodycam footage was downloaded, he had yet to access any of it. He also said the hearing was a preliminary only, and the hearing should not be postponed to allow time for a medical expert to testify – which was a move more appropriate in a trial setting, he said.
He also brought up that the families of both men had traveled from their homes in California to appear for the hearing, and asked that the hearing take place.
After more than 30 minutes, Westfall ruled that the hearing would proceed.
One primary issue discussed related to bail. Jarvis said that since her client was facing two homicide criminal negligence due to DUI charges, that meant Budge could be held without bail pending trial, under the premise the defendant may pose a risk to the public, and Jarvis wanted her client released.
Jarvis’ position was that the crash was the result of her client’s medical condition, as opposed to impairment – namely the bowel issue that Budge told officers she was suffering from when the crash took place — as well as several other health conditions.
She also said the state would have to prove criminal negligence, and there was none, she said.
Jarvis further explained that typically, what is seen in these types of incidents that involve an impaired driver, she said, is other driving behaviors, such as speeding, swerving or some other reckless action that precedes the event.
In this case, she said, there were no reports of Budge driving erratically, or of hitting road signs or any calls reporting an impaired driver, until the crash happened.
“The evidence in this case doesn’t support that,” said Jarvis, adding that her client’s actions were not criminally negligent.
The state’s position, on the other hand, was that Budge was impaired at the time of the crash, as evidenced, Weiland said, by the certified Drug Recognition Expert, St. George Police Officer Cody Painter, who has undergone extensive training on how to detect drug-impaired drivers and who also testified during the hearing.
Painter was called to the scene after responding officers noticed signs of possible impairment. Budge appeared lethargic and confused after the crash, according to testimony provided by Washington City Police officer Scott Ray, who was one of the first officers on the scene.
Ray said that instead of stopping, the defendant continued heading west until she pulled over several hundred yards away. There was also a report of a bystander who followed the Highlander immediately after the crash, which was why the defendant was pulled off the road where officers later found her.
During his testimony, Painter went over the various tests that were conducted at the scene, a majority of which Budge failed, he said, even after allowing the defendant to do some of the tests over or modifying the tests due to Budge’s physical conditions.
During cross-examination, Jarvis asked Painter more than once to describe the failed tests in relation to the type of controlled substance that could have been responsible, and Painter continued to say his role was to determine impairment, not drug type, as that would be left to the crime lab.
According to the toxicology report received on the morning of the hearing, several substances were detected in the defendant’s system following the incident, including clonazepam, benzodiazepine and butalbital, which is a barbiturate. The test also detected sertraline, an antidepressant, and duloxetine, a non-opiate medication used to treat pain and low mood.
While Budge told officers at the scene that she was on a fentanyl drip the previous day at the hospital, there was no fentanyl detected in her system, according to the results.
Weiland said the controlled substances detected in the defendant’s system also had a cumulative effect since each substance increases the effect of the other when combined.
Weiland also said the defendant’s actions that day were clear signs of impairment, and by driving impaired, he said, she was also criminally negligent – which supported both prongs of the charge.
On the issue of impairment, Westfall ruled that the testimony provided during the hearing was sufficient to meet probable cause to support the state’s position that Budge was impaired at the time of the incident.
As to criminal negligence, Westfall said he could not think of any other instance where a person driving a vehicle while impaired was not a criminally negligent act, and he ruled in favor of the state.
As such, Westfall said the evidence presented was sufficient to support the charges and the case was bound over for trial.
The case was scheduled for a review hearing to address bail that will take place over Webex on May 25. The defendant remains in custody without bail.
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