Attorneys argue for independent review of Menzies’ competency

Assistant Utah Attorney General Daniel Boyer, meanwhile, said that the arguments on behalf of Menzies were “inadequate” to reopen competency proceedings.

He revealed that the state was in possession of 13 phone calls between May 7 and July 7, which he said were “highly relevant” and showed that Menzies could not raise a significant issue.

Zuckerman said he had just received those calls on Wednesday.

The hearing ended without a decision, and Bates said he would be issuing a written ruling.

In 1988, Menzies was convicted of killing a young mother, 26-year-old Maureen Hunsaker. Court documents show that Menzies abducted Hunsaker from a Kearns gas station where she worked. Two days later, her body was found in Big Cottonwood Canyon.

After the hearing, Hunsaker’s son, Matt Hunsaker, said he hoped the execution process remained “on the clock” despite the legal fight over Menzies’ competency status.

“Regardless (of) how it’s going to be, no matter what happens, there’s always going to be, ‘I’m worse, I’m worse,’ and that’s where we’re at,” Hunsaker told reporters. “Where do we draw the line in determining this? Like I told the judge, I believe he’s just playing.”

Menzies is scheduled to be executed on Sept. 5. He originally chose the firing squad as his preferred method of execution.

In 2024, Menzies’ attorneys told the court their client had dementia. They argued that he would not understand what it means to be executed. But on June 6, 2025, after sixteen months of evaluations, a judge ruled that Menzies’ attorneys had not proven that their client’s mental condition prevented him from understanding.

On July 9, 3rd District Judge Matthew Bates signed Menzies’ execution warrant.