OGDEN, Utah — A judge is getting ready to decide whether a former Salt Lake City police officer intentionally crushed someone's leg with his car in Ogden.
If found guilty, Thomas Caygle could face up to five years in prison for aggravated assault.
The incident began with a fender bender in 2022 but turned into a second crash when Caygle and the victim decided to move their cars out of traffic.
At the time, Caygle was an officer with the Salt Lake City Police Department. He was off-duty at the time of the crash.
After the incident, Caygle was fired for violation of department policy.
At first, the victim said he thought Caygle was drunk because he was slurring his words.
The victim initially said he smelled alcohol on Caygle's breath and that he heard Caygle put the car into gear before ramming him, but he later withdrew those statements.
Caygle testified that he had chewing tobacco in his mouth and that he was going through a panic attack.
When asked if any alcohol was found in Caygle's system, a forensic technician testified no and that she couldn't determine from one drug test whether that person was "absolutely impaired."
However, blood tests did show Caygle had Xanax in his system, which his doctor said was prescribed for generalized anxiety disorder and panic disorder.
"His prescription says he can take (additional doses) during an episode of panic," testified Dr. Justin Mansfield. "He's been a patient of mine for over a decade."
Dr. Mansfield also testified that some patients may slur their speech while going through panic attacks.
When officers arrived on scene, Caygle failed his field sobriety test and was arrested. He was not given a preliminary breath test for alcohol.
Prosecutor Sean Brian is asking Judge Jason C. Nelson to believe the second crash was intentional. He says Caygle was angry after the first crash and retaliated against the victim when he called 911.
Brian also said Caygle's explanation of the vehicle’s transmission getting "jammed" does not make sense.
"I tried to put it in reverse immediately, and it went to neutral, but it would not go into reverse," Caygle said. "The only option I had at that point was to push the brake as hard as I could to make sure it doesn't go forward anymore... You cannot get it from neutral into reverse, which is the next gear, or into park, without physically grabbing the shifter and pulling it towards you and then up."
Alex Van Zomeren, an expert witness who testified on car repairs, said it is not
possible for a transmission to "make a mistake" and "go into neutral" rather than reverse.
Although the trial was supposed to conclude Thursday, it has taken longer than expected. Both sides will return on Friday. Rather than seating a jury, both sides have asked Judge Nelson to make a ruling on whether Caygle is guilty or not guilty.
