Man charged in Eagle Mountain crash will face trial in April for murder of 2 boys
Nov 5, 2024, 3:00 PM
Kent Cody Barlow is charged with two counts of murder after a crash killed two boys in Eagle Mountain. His trial was set Monday for April in the coming year. (Salt Lake County Jail)
(Salt Lake County Jail)
PROVO — A judge has scheduled a jury trial for Kent Cody Barlow to begin April 14, 2025, after there have been multiple delays.
Fourth District Judge Derek Pullan said this trial date is firm, and would not move unless there is a compelling circumstance that would be unforeseeable. He encouraged attorneys to work as if the jury trial would not be moved.
Barlow is accused of causing a crash that killed two 3-year-old boys, Odin Jeffrey Ratliff and Hunter Charlie Jackson, while they were playing in a horse corral in Eagle Mountain on May 2, 2022.
Three others who were in the car with Barlow testified during preliminary hearings that he was driving at a high rate of speed and ran a stop sign before the car hit a bump that sent it off the road and out of control, causing it to veer into Cedar Valley Stables.
The 2025 trial for Barlow is scheduled to end on the third anniversary of the crash.
Mothers of both boys have spoken against the multiple delays of the jury trial, one of which was caused by prosecutors who modified the charges from manslaughter to murder, and others caused by defense attorneys seeking more time to prepare.
Ultimately, the trial that was supposed to happen in September was delayed after one of Barlow’s attorneys had a death in his family, leading to the Utah Supreme Court allowing him to withdraw from the case, and a second attorney who said she was not prepared to try the case on her own.
During the hearing, Barlow’s new attorney, Justin Morrison, dropped multiple motions filed in the case before he was involved. He is no longer contesting whether prosecutors can use a 911 call, some evidence from the aftermath of the crash, or DNA evidence found on a belt buckle at the jury trial.
Read the full story at ksl.com.
Related:
- Trial postponed for man accused of killing two toddlers in Eagle Mountain
- Man accused of killing two kids in Eagle Mountain crash pleads not guilty
- Lawyers attempt to keep suspect’s statements private, judge overrules
