Browns Canyon resident Greg Kyle DeBoer told investigators he shot and killed 61-year-old Patrick Hayes in self-defense near Jordanelle State Park in a road rage incident last fall.
Last month, he admitted he buried the gun near his home and was charged with one count of obstruction of justice, a second-degree felony.
However, DeBoer wasn’t charged in connection with Hayes’ death, and Wasatch County Sheriff Jared Rigby said that’s unlikely to change.
“The prosecutors have the burden to be able to show, when they’re charging, that they can overcome defense of a vehicle or defense of a house or defense of a person,” he said. “It’s a very difficult decision to make.”
Investigators say camera footage from the Ross Creek entrance of Jordanelle State Park shows that on Sept. 25, the night of the fatal shooting, DeBoer pulled up in a Jeep Gladiator behind Hayes at around 11 p.m. They say the video shows Hayes got out of his car and was standing near the passenger side of the Jeep when he was shot.
According to a November press release from the sheriff’s office, Hayes allegedly approached the Jeep holding a metal baton and a pocketknife.
After the shooting, investigators say the driver of the Jeep fled the scene. No report was made to law enforcement until about 12 hours later, when a passerby found Hayes dead on the side of the road. His car was still running, with the driver’s door open and blinkers flashing.
Rigby said to decide what charges to file in the case, investigators worked to analyze that late-night altercation between the two men.
“What we were really working on for the bulk of the time was not only gathering evidence but [also] analyzing technology-based evidence to see whether we could say more conclusively who provoked the interaction between Mr. Hayes and Mr. DeBoer,” he said.
By the time DeBoer was arrested last month, Rigby said the prosecutors didn’t think they could prove beyond a reasonable doubt that DeBoer wasn’t acting in self-defense.
“Even though you might cite someone, or you might charge them into court, that beginning process takes probable cause,” he said. “In order to be successful at trial and get a conviction, the standard is beyond a reasonable doubt.”
Rigby said that’s a much higher standard than probable cause.
“Even though they might only need probable cause for a citation or an arrest or to charge, we really have in our minds ‘beyond a reasonable doubt,’ and whether we feel like we can meet that burden,” he said.
He said, for now, the attorney’s office doesn’t believe there is enough evidence to charge DeBoer with Hayes’ death. But he added if more evidence in the case comes to light, the sheriff’s office and prosecutors will take it seriously.
Rigby also said his office is concerned that the shooting was sparked by road rage.
“[We’re] very concerned about road rage and the state of a lot of people’s minds these days when it comes to their frustrations and their anger while driving – what’s appropriate and what’s not appropriate ways to deal with interactions with each other,” he said.
DeBoer was released on bail Dec. 27. He’s scheduled to appear for a preliminary hearing for the felony obstruction charge in 4th District Court Jan. 22.
A second-degree felony is punishable by up to 15 years in prison and up to $10,000 in fines.
The last time the Wasatch County Sheriff’s Office investigated a death was in August 2023, when investigators determined a Midway man shot his son in self-defense.