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SALT LAKE CITY — A Layton man is now facing 20 criminal charges accusing him of threatening to kill 11 people in a home and fighting with six officers who tried to arrest him.
Kristopher Michael Parham, 34, was charged Wednesday in 3rd District Court with six counts of assault on a police officer, a second-degree felony; 11 counts of aggravated assault and being a restricted person in possession of a gun, third-degree felonies; failing to stop at the command an officer, a class A misdemeanor; and interfering with an officer, a class B misdemeanor.
Just before 3 a.m. Sunday, Salt Lake police were called to the area of 1200 East and 800 South on a report of a suicidal man who was armed with a gun and threatening others. Officers spotted the man and approached him.
"He started reaching for his waistband, where his gun was located. An officer yelled the male was reaching for the handgun in his waistband. The male then decided to try run from officers, and commands were given to stop. The male was tackled," according to a police booking affidavit.
Parham managed to get away from that officer and starting running again, police say. He was tackled again near 1100 East and 800 South.
"The male started reaching his right hand toward his waistband, where again the announcement was made the male was reaching for a gun. Numerous strikes to (Parham's) face and torso were given. The male was eventually detained in handcuffs and a handgun was removed … which was loaded with a single cartridge," the affidavit states.
Charging documents further state that "six officers attempted to arrest (Parham) as he continuously reached into his waistband for the handgun.
"The male made several efforts to try (to) pull his handgun out of his waistband in what would be an effort to shoot police," the affidavit alleges. "These six officers were in immediate danger of being shot by the handgun."
One officer suffered cuts and bruises while trying to make an arrest when Hawkins "dragged the officer down a 5-foot retaining wall and onto the sidewalk," the charges state.
After he was arrested, police retracing Parham's steps learned that he had made suicidal comments to a woman who then invited him into her house, where about 10 other people were at, to try and "ease his suicidal ideations," police wrote in the affidavit. Instead, Parham allegedly threatened everyone.
"In total, there were 11 people in the house who were affected by these aggravated threats to kill everyone in the house," according to the affidavit. "The arrested party displayed a handgun and told this (woman) he would kill every occupant in the house."
The crime lab identified Parham's handgun as a "ghost gun," meaning it does not have a serial number, the charges say. Such weapons are often put together as a kit or from using parts of several guns.
