Milan Brenda Haynie, a 12-year-old White/Caucasian female, tragically lost her life on January 17, 2020, in what would become known as Grantsville, Utah's first homicide in nearly two decades. On that day, her 16-year-old brother, Colin "CJ" Haynie, stayed home from school and, over a period of about five hours, methodically shot and killed their mother and three of his siblings as they returned to their family home.
The horrific events began around 1:00 p.m.
when Milan and her 52-year-old mother, Consuelo Alejandra Haynie, arrived home. CJ shot them both multiple times in their heads, necks, and upper bodies. He then waited for his other siblings to arrive. His 15-year-old sister, Alexis, was killed sometime between 2:00 and 5:00 p.m., also suffering multiple gunshot wounds. At approximately 5:17 p.m., his 14-year-old brother, Matthew, returned home and was shot once in the head.
The final member of the family to arrive home that evening, around 6:15 p.m., was the father, Colin Haynie. CJ shot his father in the leg, but the man was able to wrestle the handgun away from his son, preventing further bloodshed. After the struggle, CJ told his father that his intention was to kill everyone in the house except for himself. An older brother was away at college and was not present during the incident.
Colin Jeffery "CJ" Haynie was arrested and subsequently charged as an adult with four counts of aggravated murder, one count of attempted aggravated murder, and multiple counts of illegal discharge of a firearm. In July 2022, he pleaded guilty to the charges. On July 12, 2023, he was sentenced to four consecutive terms of 25 years to life for the murders, along with a concurrent sentence for the attempted murder of his father. Prosecutors stated that CJ's motive was a desire for a "clean slate" and a "new opportunity in life." The tragic event was the deadliest mass shooting in Utah since 2007.
