A Utah teen has been sentenced to prison for up to 15 years for putting his uncle in a fatal chokehold last year at the victim's Wayne County home.
Dallas Hamilton pleaded guilty as charged on Monday to second-degree felony manslaughter for the October 2015 death of 32-year-old Jerimiah Randall James.
In exchange for his plea, prosecutors dismissed a count of class B misdemeanor failure to report the finding of a dead human body.
After Hamilton entered his plea, 6th District Judge Marvin Bagley immediately sentenced him to a one-to-15-year prison term, with credit for 255 days already served. The judge also ordered that the teen pay $5,500 to his grandmother to contribute to the $11,000 in funeral costs.
If Hamilton successfully completes his sentence and parole, prosecutors have agreed to support a two-step reduction in his conviction to a class A misdemeanor, the court record notes.
Wayne County Attorney LeEllen McCartney said the plea deal saves time and money spent at trial, and gives Hamilton the chance to turn his life around.
"Dallas is a very young man, he's only 18," McCartney told The Tribune on Tuesday. "In some ways, this plea deal gives him the opportunity to still recover from this. [But] obviously he has to pay consequences, substantial consequences."
The county attorney said the victim's family was supportive of the resolution, but are concerned that he will get out of prison too early. McCartney said the judge suggested at sentencing that the parole board consider a substantial prison term for the teen, and the prosecutor said she agrees with that recommendation.
Hamilton — who was 17 years old when he caused his uncle's death last October — was being prosecuted in adult court following a February certification hearing.
Wayne County sheriff's deputies testified during a November preliminary hearing that the teen reported to police that he had been drinking alcohol with his uncle and grandfather on Oct. 4, 2015 when he got into a fight with his uncle and put him in a chokehold twice.
He allegedly told police that he put James in a chokehold a second time after he saw the uncle standing over the teen's grandfather, yelling at him.
"The choke continued until Jerimiah quit moving or quit resisting," Wayne County sheriff's Deputy Matthew Webster testified. "Then [the teen] rolled him off the couch and onto the floor."
In the morning, Hamilton realized James was dead and asked his grandfather what they should do, according to testimony. The older man told him to make coffee, the defendant allegedly told police.
So Hamilton brewed a pot of coffee, took a shower and ate breakfast as James' blanket-covered body lay in the living room, according to testimony. Police were alerted later that day to the death.
A state medical examiner later determined that James died of strangulation.
McCartney said Hamilton's plea deal also hinged on his cooperation if the county attorney's office decided to pursue similar charges against his grandfather. The grandfather, however, died within the last month.
A month after James' death, Hamilton was charged in juvenile court with forcible sexual abuse, according to court records. In that case, a 15-year-old girl told police that the defendant "held her down, took off her clothes and attempted to rape her," charging documents allege. The incident allegedly happened in September 2014 in West Jordan after the girl returned home from school, according to court records.
Hamilton's juvenile court history also includes an adjudication for burglary and five contempt adjudications, when Hamilton fled or was not cooperative with placements and programs.
The juvenile court judge who certified Hamilton as an adult noted that the teen "was on the run" at the time of the manslaughter offense.
jmiller@sltrib.com
