Estimated read time: 3-4 minutes
- Daniel Lee Johnson's 2022 murder conviction was reversed by Utah's Court of Appeals last week.
- The court ruled the jury should have been instructed on imperfect self-defense, but the judge denied the request.
- If the jury at a second trial finds Johnson acted in imperfect self-defense, he could be found guilty of a lesser manslaughter charge.
SALT LAKE CITY — A Roy man convicted of murder in 2022 will get a new trial after the Utah Court of Appeals reversed his conviction on Thursday.
Daniel Lee Johnson's attorney had asked a judge to instruct the jury on perfect and imperfect self-defense, but 2nd District Judge Jennifer Valencia denied the request, the appeals court opinion states.
The Utah Court of Appeals decided that the court should have granted the request to tell the jury about imperfect self-defense, and that leaving that instruction out hurt Johnson at trial.
Johnson shot and killed his friend, Steve Bailey, 38, on April 10, 2021, over a financial disagreement. But he testified during his trial that he got the gun only to scare his friend and did not intend to shoot him.
Johnson, 52, was sentenced to a term of 15 years to life in prison for murder, a first-degree felony, one to 15 years for obstructing justice, a second-degree felony, and two sentences of zero to five years in prison for abuse of a body and use of a firearm as a restricted person, third-degree felonies.
If a jury in Johnson's second trial determines he acted in imperfect self-defense — or thought he was defending himself even though his actions did not meet the legal definition of self-defense — he could be found guilty of a lesser manslaughter charge.
Johnson and Bailey had known each other for a year, but one day the two had disagreements over a lottery ticket that won $138. It was Johnson's ticket, but Bailey took it to redeem it after Johnson thought Bailey had given it back to him, the appellate opinion said.
Later, after Johnson told Bailey to keep the money and stay away from his family, Bailey came to Johnson's home and repeatedly asked to speak with him. Johnson's son told his dad Bailey seemed very mad, and the opinion said Johnson reported he was scared and later observed himself that Bailey was very aggressive and angry.
Johnson retrieved a pistol before walking to the front door.
"As (Bailey) was attempting to slam the storm door, Johnson moved his left hand, which was still holding the gun, up to block the door. During that process, the gun 'went off' and (Bailey) 'fell backwards,'" the opinion says.
Johnson went inside, put the gun away and took his children to his neighbor's home, telling his neighbor he "did what (he) had to do" to protect his family and had shot someone.
After that, the opinion said Johnson put Bailey's body in Bailey's car, drove it to an Ogden church and abandoned it.
After the body was found, police interviewed Johnson as the last person he had called and texted, and Johnson eventually told police he had shot the man but said it was an accident. He told officers the Bailey had scared his kids, and he grabbed the gun to scare him.
Johnson also testified at trial that he did not intend to shoot Bailey but wanted to scare him away — but details about the gun going off were different during the trial than he had explained in his interview with police.
When deciding to decline the request to instruct the jury on self-defense, the district court judge determined that Bailey's pounding on the door and making loud noise did not constitute an imminent risk of death or serious injury.
The Utah Court of Appeals, however, said he was entitled to an instruction on imperfect self-defense, because there was a reasonable basis for a jury to determine he acted in imperfect self-defense — specifically citing that Johnson's son repeatedly told the Children's Justice Center that Bailey had moved to attack or push his father prior to the gun being shot.
