OGDEN, Utah — A man convicted of killing a company CEO and his daughter in a 2024 accident in Ogden Canyon was sentenced Friday.
Michael John Love was hauling a bulldozer on State Route 39 on July 6, 2024, when the equipment dislodged from his tow truck and fell onto an oncoming vehicle. Lifetime Products CEO Richard Hendrickson and his 16-year-old daughter, Sally, were killed when the machinery sheared off the family's vehicle.
Officials said Love, the owner of Weber County-based Love's Towing, had failed to secure the bulldozer he had been towing properly. At the sentencing, Judge Craig Hall said he didn’t believe what happened was an accident.
"While the family was crushed beneath your bulldozer, you did not rush to their aid; instead, you removed the tie-down chains from their storage locations and threw them over the truck to make it appear as though the bulldozer had been properly secured,” he said.
In March, a jury found Love guilty on multiple counts, including Negligent Homicide of Richard and Sally, and Aggravated Assault for causing severe bodily injury to Richard’s other daughter, Mollie.
During his sentencing hearing Friday, Love apologized to the Hendrickson family for the "problems" he had caused them, adding that he would have to live with his actions for the rest of his life.
“I didn’t do it on purpose, and I’m sorry that it happened,” Love said.
“And if I could take it back, I would." He said he has learned a lot in jail and apologized for putting his own family through this ordeal. The judge said he received letters from people on Love’s behalf that said he is not a threat to society, is remorseful, and has changed since his incarceration.
Love was sentenced to serve 1-15 years in jail on the Aggravated Assault charges, and 364 days for each of the Negligent Homicide charges. He was also sentenced to 0-5 years for one count of Obstruction of Justice and 364 days in custody for another. The sentences will be served consecutively, with credit for time served.
It was emotional in the courtroom, as Hendrickson family members explained how a crash two years ago changed their lives forever.
"We do not get the chance to tell them we love them one last tim,” said Richard’s son and Sally’s brother, Sam. He and his mom were also in the car, and said they still carry the weight of that tragic day.
"Richard is bigger than life and has left a huge hole in our hearts,” said Julie Hendickson, Richard’s wife and Sally’s mom. “It has been hard to navigate life without him. He’s my everything, and everything to my kids."
In his leadership role with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and with the Lifetime Company, Richard leaves behind many people he has touched.
"Sally’s light continues to shine,” said Sam. “She was a beautiful young woman who was just beginning to experience life to the fullest.”
One of the daughters, Mollie, survived the crash and is still on a long road to recovery.
"Because of the decisions of a stranger, our whole life changed in a second,” Mollie said. “My whole face was smashed, I was in so much pain in the emergency room as they pulled glass and gravel from my lips and face.”
She had to delay her mission, start college at BYU with missing teeth, braces and scars on her face, commute from Ogden to Provo for doctors’ appointments while attending school full-time, and deal with the heavy emotional grief of losing two of her favorite people.
The judge said he was taken aback when he saw Love had about 60 prior offenses that he had pled guilty to or had been found guilty of.
"Most alarmingly, your criminal history already includes a prior offense for failure to secure load,” Judge Hall said.
According to state law, the amount of time Love will actually spend in jail will be up to the Board of Pardons and Parole.
