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OGDEN — A 2nd District Court jury on Wednesday found one of two men accused in the shooting death of a homeless man in 2018 guilty of murder for his role in the case.
Dalton James Aiken, 28, of North Ogden, was found guilty of murder and possession of a dangerous weapon by a restricted person.
Aiken and Cory Michael Fitzwater, 35, of Hooper, were each charged with first-degree murder in the shooting death of 28-year-old Brian Racine near the 21st Street Pond in Ogden during the early hours of Aug. 16, 2018.
Both Aiken and Fitzwater were arrested on drug charges about an hour before Racine’s body was found, according to police affidavits filed in 2nd District Court at the time. A Weber County sheriff’s deputy smelled a strong marijuana odor coming from a vehicle that the two men were in, near 900 West and 17th Street. Deputies located a .45-caliber gun in the vehicle and a magazine to the gun during that search.
When police found Racine’s body, they were able to link the gun found in the vehicle to evidence found at the scene of the shooting, Ogden Police Lt. Tim Scott said on Aug. 17, 2018. According to a charging document filed on Aug. 24, 2018, Aiken told police they were both in the area at the time and he saw Fitzwater fatally shoot Racine.
Things got a little more complicated from there. The Ogden Standard-Examiner reported in December that jail calls from both men indicated they planned to accuse each other of fatally shooting Racine.
Following his conviction, Aiken is due back in court for sentencing on July 29, according to court records. Fitzwater's case is still ongoing. He pleaded not guilty during his initial appearance in 2nd District Court on Sept. 12, 2018. Court records show a preliminary hearing for his case is slated for Tuesday, and a jury trial is set for later this year.
