Judge orders 17-year-old to stand trial in 2012 murder of Riverton girl

Judge orders 17-year-old to stand trial in 2012 murder of Riverton girl

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SALT LAKE CITY — "If ever there was an adult crime committed, this is it."

Prosecutor Peter Leavitt made that declaration Wednesday during closing arguments of a preliminary hearing for a 17-year-old accused of brutally murdering his 15-year-old girlfriend when he was only 14.

"Bind this case over and give us a shot at justice," he said.

Saying it was "a fairly simple analysis," 3rd District Juvenile Judge Dane Nolan agreed with Leavitt and ordered the teenager to stand trial for murder, a first-degree felony, and obstruction of justice, a second-degree felony, in the 2012 killing of Anne Kasprzak.

"I'm looking to you as a suspect," Nolan told the defendant while also noting it was a low legal standard that had to be met for the case to be sent to trial.

Nolan will next decide whether the teen should stand trial in juvenile court or adult court.

The boy is accused of brutally murdering Kasprzak by crushing her skull and breaking multiple bones in her face before dumping her body in the Jordan River.

"There is no question Anne Kasprzak's death wasn't an accident. It wasn't an assault that went too far. It was a murder," Leavitt said, adding that the person who assaulted Kasprzak "meant for her to die."


There is no question Anne Kasprzak's death wasn't an accident. It wasn't an assault that went too far. It was a murder.

–Peter Leavitt, prosecutor


Kasprzak had told the defendant, her boyfriend, that she was pregnant with his child. She left a note for her parents on the night she disappeared saying she was going to run away with him to California. She had previously stated that a person named "LJ" might also be the father.

But Leavitt said the pregnancy and "LJ" — who he contends never existed — gave the defendant a motive for murder. He wanted to "make the problem go away," Leavitt said.

"What we see is a sophisticated mind," he said. "A very well thought out, preplanned, premeditated murder."

But defense attorney Chris Bown said his teen client, whom the Deseret News has chosen not to name at this time, was no criminal mastermind.

"At the end of the day you have innuendo, false statements by a lot of people," Bown said.

He pointed out that the defendant still had his shoes with him when questioned by police a couple of days after Kasprzak's body was found. "They try to make him out to be a master murderer who didn't even get rid of his shoes," Bown said.

The defendant claimed Kasprzak got a bloody nose one night and dripped onto his shoes. He then texted a friend telling him to "remember" to tell police about the bloody nose. But Bown said being a liar doesn't make a person a killer.

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Veronica Kasprzak testified that on the day her daughter disappeared, she told her that the boyfriend had asked her to run away with him. Her mother kept the defendant's phone number, telling her daughter that if she ever went missing, he would be the first person she called.

At 9:01 p.m. on March 10, 2012, Veronica Kasprzak called the boy to ask if he had seen her daughter. He told her that the girl had told him that she was running away to California with LJ, the mother testified. About 10:30 p.m., the defendant called the mother — something she said was a first. He asked if Anne had been found yet.

"He was respectful," she said. "I just felt that there was something else he wasn't telling me."

Prosecutors believe by that time, Anne Kasprzak was dead.

"I guess the idea that one moment he can be more calm and mellow and talking to me on the phone and the next few minutes be killing my daughter and then calling me back to see if I know anything makes me sick," Kasprzak said after Wednesday's hearing.

Testifying about her slain daughter was difficult, she said.

"This is the first time that I've ever sat across from (the defendant) since years ago when he was at our house eating dinner. As a mom, I feel frustrated at the charges he's facing and the lack of recognition that this has impacted him in any way," she said. "The lack of eye contact, the lack of … any remorse or involvement or concern about what has happened."

Kasprzak admitted that her daughter had her faults. She adopted the girl about the time she turned 10 after serving as her social worker for years.

"Anne had had a rough start before she was placed in foster care," Veronica Kasprzak testified. "I wanted her to have a chance. I wanted her to have a chance to be connected, committed and stable."

She said her daughter had a hard time trusting people and acted out. She believes Anne made up the pregnancy rumor because she liked the fantasy of having someone who would love her unconditionally and never leave her. Kasprzak also said her daughter would make up fictitious people once in a while, would hide things from her and lie about who she was hanging out with or where she was going.

After the judge bound the case over for trial, the hearing moved immediately into the certification phase. For the next several days, attorneys will argue whether the defendant should stand trial as an adult.

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