Show mm& The Salt Lake Tribune UTAH Thursday January Accused Killer Gaims Confusion Salina Woman Facing Charges in Beating Death of Elderly Neighbor i BY STEPHEN HUNT THE SALT LAKE TRIBUNS Accused killer Jorge Martin Benvenuto was depressed confused and distressed when he pleaded guilty to mur-der two months ago according to a report filed this week in - kSrd District Court Bat the man understood what he was doing "eaid clinical psychologist Nancy Cohn after interviewing Ben- venuto for about IVi hours on Christmas Day Prosecutor Robert Stott said the report leaves Benvenuto f with little evidence to support his attempt to withdraw guilty pleas entered in October Meanwhile on Wednesday Judge Anne Stirba said prose- tutors may interview Benvenutos former attorneys about the i defendants mental state and how it impacted his decision to enter a plea The judge also granted access to Benvenutos ' mental-healt- h records and statements made by his family to attorneys "Any aspect of Mr Benvenutos mental health is subject to inquiry said the judge who is deciding whether the defen- dant may withdraw his pleas f Benvenuto was charged with capital murder attempted ag-- i gravated murder and two counts of aggravated robbery for fatally shooting Zachary Snarr and wounding Yvette Rodier both 18 years old at Little Dell Reservoir on Aug 28 ' 1896 Facing the death penalty Benvenuto pleaded guilty on Oct murder and attempted aggravated murder in a deal that ensured he would spend his life in prison A month later Benvenuto asked to withdraw his pleas say- defense team had coerced him into ing his accepting the deal But Benvenutos new attorney Robert Booker said 15 1997 to capital court-appoint- First Night Is All Right With Revelers -- Continued from B-- l rhythm-and-blue- available in Salt Lake City Wednesday night but volunteers reported brisk sales of the $7 First Night buttons required for admittance to most events Weather Extremes Add Up To Average Year I Continued from B-- alcohol We wanted to have something the kids could enjoy More than 12000 attended the celebration rs parents On Main Street cavorted in a huge sandbox Children built sand castles while their parents looked on or in some cases pitched in My wifes on vacation and Ive got the kids" said Gordon Seibert of Salt Lake City burying his sons Jaiya 5 and Scott 3 up to their chests in sand Scott squealed with delight as his father dumped another pailful of sand around him Im afraid theyre going to be pretty itchy if I keep going Elsewhere people played bingo snacked on hot dogs or danced to s a band playing Jungle Boogie The array of activities pleased Don and Sylvia Hartley of Salt Lake City who brought their two young children and rated First Night 98 as better than the previous years event Ive been impressed with the full range of offerings from the classical concerts at the cathedral to the R n B band here" said Don Hartley It looks like theres something for everyone Attendance figures were not Wednesday he will not be pursuing allegations of coercion We are not saying there were threats in a back room or beatings Instead Booker contends the defendant was so depressed that his plea was not voluntarily knowingly or intelligently entered as required by law But pursuing this tack has required Benvenuto to waive his attorney client privilege with his former t attorneys An evidentiary hearing is scheduled for Jan 16 Prosecutor Stott said he will call at least one of Benvenutos former defense attorneys to the witness stand Booker said he may call Cohn and psychologist Vickie Gregory who previously interviewed Benvenuto as well as Benvenutos brother and sister The defendant is expected to testify about his depression and how it affected his decision to enter a plea Following his arrest Benvenuto spent his first three months under suicide watch at the Salt Lake County Jail according to Booker And Benvenuto repeatedly expressed suicidal thoughts and was prescribed drugs for several months Cohn noted in her report that Benvenuto has a history of depression and is currently mildly to moderately depressed However there is no evidence of delusions hallucinations or other psychotic symptoms Cohn added Mr Benvenuto is young feels isolated and alone and had a great difficulty weighing the alternatives offered to him in the days and hours prior to his accepting the plea Cohn wrote He was undoubtedly confused and distressed But not in a way that would impair his reality testing or his ability to understand the implications of his entering a plea Throughout downtown Salt Lake City parents said they appreciated a New Years event they could enjoy with their children Even the many teen-agepresent looked less bored than usual Said Skyline High School junior Tim Moreshead Its better than staying home with your revelers warmed their hands over metal fire pit sculptures and nibbled from food booths serving everything from falafel to Navajo tacos At the rhythm altar on Main Street and 200 South 10 performers in yellow jumpsuits danced about with long poles as onlookers banged oil drums to a throbbing percussive beat PROVO Thousands crowded downtown Provo on Wednesday night to celebrate the citys inaugural participation in First Night There were all of the qualities of a civic celebration: music food and a dancing parade But the most popular attractions seemed to be anything that generated heat including a hot air balloon BYU youth leadership major Kara Egbert headed up the childrens activity tent which included faux rock climbing golf and balloon art She tried to provide a New Years Eve celebration that she never knew as a child growing up in Missouri We had nothing like this Egbert said Everything back home was private parties with a lot of face-painti- OGDEN Ogdens inaugural First Night brought an alternative for New Years Eve to the area And Ogden resident Don Wood who was helping his daughter make a magic wand in the Imagination Station said This is a truly family-oriente- d project Its a great alternative for the New Years party especially for families The kids can have a celebration like the adults To bring families to the art of Ogden City organizers of First Night brought in activities ranging from family movies held at the Egyptian Theatre to a g blowup slide to a room To bring in the older crowd or- B3 1998 1 Nielsons body BY BEN WINSLOW On Monday night investigators executed a search warrant at Johnson's home Lloyd said part of the evidence implicating Johnson in the killing was a pair of shoes taken from her residence The same type of shoes left track marks from her apartment to the site on the river where Nielsons property was found and back to SPECIAL TO THE TRIBUNE SALINA A woman was charged Wednesday in the bludgeoning death of a man who was her neighbor Sevier County Attorney Don Brown said e Cindy Johnson 34 was charged with murder in the death of Dean Nielson 70 Johnson is accused of beating Nielson to death in his apartment on Sunday She was living in the same apartment complex said Sevier County sheriffs Lt Delbert Lloyd Sevier County sheriffs Det Sgt Bill Brewer said Nielsen paid Johnson to do some light housework cooking and chores He also said Nielsen and Johnson had had conflicts in the past Johnson was arrested Sunday night for a parole violation and was already in the county jail when a warrant was issued for her arrest Shes been a suspect from the beginning and we finally felt we had enough to make an arrest Lloyd said Evidence found near the Sevier River ties her to the killing he said On Sunday police found a tool box on the river bank along with a bottle of prescription drugs with Nielsons name on it When police went to Nielsons apartment they found first-degre- her apartment Lloyd said the weapon used to kill Nielson described as a smooth-surfac- e blunt object has not been found Blood evidence in the case is still awaiting results from the state crime lab The killer was probably after drugs Lloyd said adding Nielson who had an amputated leg had a lot of prescription painkillers at his apartment According to records from 6th District Court Johnson has been charged in the past for burglary and possession of a controlled substance Shes had a long history of drug and alcohol abuse said Lloyd Johnson is in the Sevier County Jail on a $500000 bond A court date on the murder charge has not been scheduled Tribune correspondent Hal Edwards and The Associated Press contributed to this story Apparent Murder Victim Found by Brother THE SALT LAKE TRIBUNE handgun of the type believed to have inflicted the wounds at the scene Kirk said Without a weapon there I dont see how it could be Kirk said A Salt Lake City man was found dead in his apartment Wednesday afternoon the victim of an apparent homicide Pedro Rosales Martinez was found lying in the kitchen of his apartment at 743 W 1300 South by his brother at about 2 pm said police Lt Phil Kirk There were gunshot wounds to Martinezs head and foot but police did not find a large-calib- Two other men who shared the apartment with the victim were reportedly out of town Martinez who was approximately 28 years y old had lived in the brick apartment building less than a month Kirk said Investigators were not ready to call the death a homicide until more could be learned about the victim and the crime scene Kirk said adding theres a lot of unanswered questions at this point self-inflict- one-stor- Martinezs brother said he found the door ajar when he went to check on his brother Kirk said He called police after finding the body in the kitchen Police were still interviewing the brother Wednesday evening story-tellin- ganizers scheduled four live bands Betty Friedberg said We came out just to show that older ladies could still get out and have a good time The culmination of Ogdens First Night began with a parti-gra- s march down 24th Street The crowd marched alongside a volcano float to Lindquist Field where the Ogden Raptors play VINTAGE QAK nr While moving the volcano burned New Years resolutions that residents dropped in Tribune correspondents Jacob Samini and Taylor Syphus contributed to this news story CLASSIC AMERICAN HOME FURNISHINGS Since IttTt FLOOR SAMPLE CLEARANCE Salt take City Year inWeather OFF 40 In terms of weather 1997 was an average year according to statistics gathered at National Weather Service headquarters at Salt Selected Oak Dining Set and Bedroom Sets l 1 by Richardson Bros Co (Americas Okkst family Owned Furniture Manufacturer) - - - a flash flood that caused an esti- mated $5 million damage A city employee nearly drowned when he fell headfirst into the rain- -- swollen Santa Clara River 5 Unusually strong canyon winds blasted the Wasatch Front twice On Feb 24 winds reaching 81 mph in Centerville whistled through canyons from Provo to Brigham City producing more r than 2000 claims for damages $8 million Winds on April 2 hit 84 mph in Centerville Damage claims that day were placed at $425 million A Utah Highway Patrol trooper was in- jured when hit with a shredded ! piece of a Burger King sign 8 Avalanches made the list for a second time With snow fall-in- g at a rate of 3 inches an hour so many slides came down Little Cottonwood that about 4000 skiers at Alta and Snowbird spent the night of Jan 1 1 in resort facilities unable to reach the Sait Lake Valley below Avalanches flit the Cliff Lodge at Snowbird and Peruvian Lodge at Alta Although much smaller 14 than initially feared natural "spring flooding occurred in Cache along the Logan and 9 County Hand Carved Bedroom Set Rhonda Haik Maylett Blacksmith Fork rivers and Spring Creek The South Fork of the Ogden River also caused problems for cabin owners between Causey and Pineview reservoirs The worst damage resulted from failure of irrigation the mid-Ma- y ditches in Draper and the southern Uintas More wind this time from 8 remnants of Hurricane Nora gusts estimated Life-Septemb-er at 70-7- 5 mph uprooted or snapped about 400 trees around Cedar Breaks National Monument and Brian Head resort in southwestern Utah Dixie Nation al Forest officials also reported considerable tree damage 9 Noras remnants and other monsoonal storms dropped 1319 inches of ram in Kanab during August and September That total almost matched Kanabs annual average (1331 inches) 1 Besides generating avalanches and canyon winds the blizzard produced Jan wmd-chi- ll readings that reached 50 below zero (Fahrenheit) So there were impressive displays of nature But all in all a few weather facts from Salt Lake City reflect the character of 1997 weather I u Solid Oak OFF 10-2- 0 $3999 Traditional Gauntry and Custom Styles ! inniBi 11-1- 3 l! Oak Framed Mirrors middle-of-the-ro- Storm Should Help Roil Back Fog That Covered Northern Utah The fog that brought in the New Year in parts of northern Utah should be gone before long A storm poised to move into the state Friday should stir up the air enough to dissipate the fog before generating moisture for several days The showers should begin Friday as rain in northern valleys with snow in the mountains But by Sunday only snow should be visible Some accumulations could be deep said National We User Service meteorologist William Alder Includes: sleigh bed dresser mirror Sc nightstand Sofa Clearance The Salt Lake Tribune Similar conditions are forecast for southern Utah but in smaller amounts Clouds ahead of the system are likely to keep this mornings dense fog from extending as far as on Wednesday when visibility was limited sharply around the Great Salt Lake shoreline in the Jordan River plain as far south as Taylorsville and in Cache Valley Fog doesnt like anything above it Alder explained That cloud cover hinders its develop- Carved Curio Beveled ! 1 China fSioc board 1159 ga ss pane with the mirrot back Old Fashion rvhng ' O SANDY 523 3553 838 E 9400 So rrfrr Store Hour: vfcfen - Sat 104 Mob & Fri til 9 New Years Day 11-- 5 1 40 Oak Bar Stools Swtl 7 OFF Large assortment of styles 99 fum with sizes i Prices effective 0n legs SALT LAKE and V ' 2724110 4716 Highland Drive to Albertsons) approved eredit ' 1 Store Hours Mon - Sat 106 (SJLstore closed on Years Dav) New r Full content of The Salt Lake Tribune is available daily on the Web ment wwwsltribcom u |