Body camera shows officers finding man stabbing his parents
Jan 20, 2025, 6:00 PM
Body camera showing West Valley City police officers finding 35-year-old Erik Bertelsen, stabbing his parents in their basement on Jan. 1, 2025. (West Valley City Police Department)
(West Valley City Police Department)
WEST VALLEY CITY — Newly released body camera shows the moments when West Valley City police officers found a man attacking his parents in their home on New Year’s Day.
On Monday, the West Valley City Police Department held a press conference where it released body camera footage worn by responding officers and spoke more about the homicide.
The department also released a 911 call from the home of the two victims, Terri Bertelsen, 63, and Kerry Bertelsen, 67. The call was mostly inaudible as the dispatcher tried to talk to the caller, but the sounds of struggle were heard.
“The dispatcher heard a commotion on the line (but) was unable to collect any information from the caller,” said WVCPD Deputy Chief Mike Fossmo. “The dispatcher left the line open and sent officers to the home.”
Fossmo said at approximately 5:20 p.m., officers arrived at the Bertelsen’s home, which was located at 3310 W. Enterado Ave. The body camera footage shows officers knocking at the front door and not seeing anyone in the house.
“As officers moved to the side of the home where a basement entrance was located, the officers appeared to see or hear something concerning,” Fossmo said.
The footage shows officers rushing down the basement stairs with their weapons drawn. One officer kicks open the basement door and finds 35-year-old Erik Bertelsen stabbing one of his parents.
The officer commands Bertelsen to drop the knife and show his hands, but he continues to stab the victim. According to Fossmo, to stop the attack, one officer fired two shots at Erik.
Video shows Bertelsen falling to the ground with officers continuing commands to drop the knife. Fossmo said the responding officer withdrew from the home as other officers began to secure the scene and Erik.
During the press conference, WVCPD Police Chief Colleen Jacobs confirmed that Terri and Kerry Bertelsen were found dead in the basement room where police found Bertelsen. Both victims died due to stab wounds.
Jacobs and other West Valley City officials said they hesitated to release the footage because of how traumatic it was but had to due to Utah’s open records law requiring them to.
“The video you see there is traumatic, and I believe it’s traumatic to those watching it as well, but we are compelled to release it, so we have,” Jacobs said.
Jacobs said she could not comment much about the case besides what’s already been made public and only answered questions related to what’s seen in the body camera footage.
The WVCPD officers involved in the shooting were placed on paid administrative leave as Protocol Team 1 and the Salt Lake County District Attorney’s Office handled the investigation.
Jacobs could not talk about a possible motive for Bertelsen stabbing his parents, but court documents show that he had a lengthy criminal history and had been in and out of prison for parole violations for over a decade.
