On the afternoon of January 26, 2003, David Charles Jones, a 44-year-old White male, was on duty as a Deputy Sheriff in Garfield County, Utah. South of the town of Escalante, he initiated a traffic stop involving a pickup truck, suspecting the driver was under the influence. After the driver failed a field sobriety test, Deputy Jones placed him in handcuffs and secured him in the back of his patrol vehicle.
He then radioed for a tow truck to have the pickup removed from the scene.
As Deputy Jones handled the logistics of the stop, the situation took a violent turn. The passenger who had been in the truck emerged with a rifle and confronted the deputy. Deputy Jones drew his service weapon and commanded the man to drop the firearm. Instead, the passenger fired at Deputy Jones, a round striking him in the chest and defeating his protective vest. Despite the severe injury, Deputy Jones managed to return fire, wounding the assailant.
Following the shooting, the passenger freed the handcuffed driver from the patrol car, and the two men fled. The tow truck driver arrived to a grim scene, finding Deputy Jones wounded and immediately calling for emergency assistance. Despite these efforts, Deputy Jones died before an ambulance could reach him. A manhunt for the two suspects ensued, and they were captured within hours. One of the apprehended men had gunshot wounds to his arm and chest, sustained during the exchange with Deputy Jones. The investigation later determined that the rifle used in the murder was loaded with ammunition specifically designed to penetrate body armor. Both suspects faced charges of capital murder. In the end, one of the men accepted a plea deal for a sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole; he remains incarcerated, while the other suspect later died in prison. David Charles Jones had been with the Garfield County Sheriff's Office for 16 months at the time of his death and was survived by his wife and five children.
