Utah double homicide suspect Mia Bailey appeared in court for the first time Wednesday morning, as a Washington County judge read off her charges and appointed her a defense attorney.
Bailey, 28, is accused of killing both her parents last week before opening fire on her brother and his wife, who were not harmed. She is facing two counts of aggravated murder; one count each of attempted aggravated murder and aggravated burglary; and seven counts of felony discharge of a firearm.
It took 5th District Judge Keith Barnes more than a minute to read through the 11 charges at Bailey’s initial appearance hearing in his courtroom. Bailey watched, straight-faced, from inside the Washington County jail, where she viewed the hearing through a live video stream. She was dressed in a blue, quilted suicide-prevention smock, with her hands bound with a chain.
Barnes then asked her if she could afford a defense attorney, to which Bailey said she only had “$20, if that.” Barnes asked if she had any assets she could sell to afford an attorney, and Bailey said she did, listing off items, such as her car, jewelry and computer.
The judge ultimately decided to appoint public defense attorney Ryan Stout, who took the stand to tell Bailey that he would visit her Wednesday or Thursday.
“I would strongly advise her not to talk to anyone about the case and not make any comments further today unless asked by the judge,” Stout said, adding, “I will be out to see you shortly.”
The hearing ended after about five minutes.
Prosecutors say Bailey killed her parents in their Washington City home on June 18, then allegedly fired at her brother and his wife through a closed basement bedroom door, where the pair retreated when they heard banging and then gunfire upstairs, according to a probable cause statement.
Bailey then left the home, setting off an hourslong search that ended around 8 a.m. on June 19, when Bailey surrendered in a field near the St. George Temple, at 250 E. 400 South.
She told police after her arrest that she was not remorseful and said, police wrote, “I would do it again. I hate them.”
While aggravated murder charges can be punishable with the death penalty, prosecutors wrote in charging documents that they are not seeking capital punishment in this case.
Since news of the homicides and search for Bailey broke last week, the case has garnered reaction from Utah conservatives. State Rep. Kera Birkeland speculated that “harmful unnatural hormone concoctions” may have played a role in the case. Bailey is transgender, and had legally changed her name and gender marker.
Utah Sen. Mike Lee has posted about the case multiple times on social media, saying that new organizations’ coverage of the search for Bailey — specifically, media identifying Bailey as a woman — constituted a public safety threat. This “woke” approach, he said, was “destructive.”
Most news organizations referred to Bailey as a woman or used female pronouns and other identifiers. They either noted she was transgender or had legally changed her gender marker, and posted photos disseminated by law enforcement during the search that showed Bailey both with both longer and shorter hair.
Bailey’s next court appearance is scheduled for July 10. She is being held in the Washington County jail without the option for bond.
