In the quiet town of Pleasant Grove, Utah, the life of a 40-year-old White female named Nicole "Nicki" Dinehart Peterson was tragically cut short on the night of May 19, 2022. Events unfolded after an apparent argument over money with her son.
Earlier in the evening, Nicki, a local tattoo artist, was at home with her husband when her 21-year-old son, Gage Anthony Dinehart, arrived asking for money in a demanding manner.
Later that night, Nicki woke her husband to tell him she was going to the bank to get some money for her son and then take him to a bar. The mother and son left the house together.
Shortly after midnight, police responded to reports of gunfire in the area of 200 West and 200 North. Upon arrival, they discovered Nicki's body in the road next to a Chevy Tahoe. She had been shot three times and was pronounced dead at the scene. Surveillance footage captured the harrowing incident, showing her being shot in the face, getting out of the SUV screaming, and then being shot a second and third time after she had fallen to the ground.
While emergency crews were still at the scene of the shooting, Gage Dinehart approached paramedics a couple of blocks away and confessed to his involvement in the crime. He reportedly told them, "I just shot my mom." Dinehart also informed officers where he had disposed of the gun and the hoodie he was wearing, which were later recovered at the Pleasant Grove Cemetery. Gage Anthony Dinehart was subsequently arrested and charged with first-degree felony murder.
