Officers testify of chaotic scene 5 years ago in trial of man accused of killing Provo officer

PROVO — Officers testified this week about the chaotic scene outside of the Orem Bed Bath & Beyond in early 2019 that led to the death of Provo police officer Joseph Shinners before prosecutors finished presenting their case Thursday morning.

The jury trial for Matt Frank Hoover, the man accused of Shinners’ murder, is scheduled to end on Friday. Hoover’s attorneys are expected to present evidence on Thursday, and the case is expected to be passed to the jury Friday morning.

After the prosecutors rested their case, Hoover’s attorneys asked for a directed verdict, or for the judge to rule that there is not enough evidence for a jury to find Hoover guilty, but 4th District Judge Kraig Powell determined a reasonable jury could find Hoover guilty.

 

Officers describe the scene

 

Jared Barney, an officer with the Provo Police Department in early 2019, testified on Tuesday about meeting up with Shinners on Jan 5, 2019, and his communications with the confidential informant who was with Hoover. He said they were both in Barney’s unmarked car. He said they planned for Hoover and the informant to go to an area that was not residential, specifically the Bed Bath & Beyond parking lot, which was very empty.

He said it was just before 10 p.m. when they followed Hoover into the parking lot and officers from Orem and Provo moved in on the car, leaving only a 10-foot wide sidewalk in front of Hoover’s car and blocks on all other sides. Barney said another officer, EJ Estrada, was getting into the car as it was starting to move. He testified that Hoover’s truck went backward, and then forward over the curb and into a wall, which spun the truck.

Barney said he followed the truck in his car as it went about 50 feet. He saw Hoover in the driver’s seat, Estrada on top of the informant’s legs and Shinners next to Estrada.

“It was pretty chaotic in the truck,” he said.

The officer said he heard Shinners yell, “Drop the gun, drop the gun,” as the car was still revving.

“When I went to reach in, he was yelling that. I turned the key off and then I hear these pops, these gunshots,” Barney said.

He said he thought he heard three shots and he didn’t see any of the weapons. After the shots, he said the scene was “a different kind of chaotic.” Hoover was moaning, and Estrada said he had the gun. Barney testified he had placed the gun in his car when he noticed Shinners had collapsed and was being pulled off the ground by another officer.

Barney said Shinners was loaded in his truck and they rushed to the hospital, with lights and sirens on and asking officers to block roads so they wouldn’t need to slow down.

Estrada testified on both Wednesday and Thursday about his experience in the cab. He said his thighs and chest were on the center console of Hoover’s truck and he was reaching over and seeking to distract Hoover by hitting his head. He said the events happened quickly, and he did not see Hoover’s gun until after the first shot was fired.

After hearing the shot and feeling pressure from it in the cabin of the truck, Estrada said he straightened himself up on his knees to get a better view of what was happening and he saw a gun in Hoover’s left hand near the door by his leg. As he tried to get the gun, he saw a second gun come in from behind him and fire a shot inches from Hoover’s abdomen, Estrada said.

Estrada said he was able to get his hands on Hoover’s handgun and put it “out of battery,” moving the slide so the gun would not shoot if Hoover pulled the trigger.

“It was a rapidly evolving event, it’s hard to break down,” he testified, noting that it was traumatic.

 

Hoover planned to avoid prison

 

Hoover’s ex-wife, Terry Hoover, who said she remained on good terms with him although their divorce was before 2019, said she did not know why she would have told police that her former husband told him if he got cornered he would have to shoot “’em,” meaning either them or him.

“He had never told me that he was going to harm anybody but himself,” she said.

She admitted that a recording of her shows her saying that Matt Hoover said he would shoot officers if he needed to in order to get away, and that he said he would shoot himself once she mentioned that the officers would have families; she said she was in shock during that interview. In her testimony, Terry Hoover said she mentioned the families to him when he said he would shoot himself because she didn’t want him to accidentally hit police.

“He had always told me he would shoot himself because he can’t go to prison,” she said. “He’s never said anything about hurting anybody but himself.”

Terry Hoover related two other times that Matt Hoover had attempted to kill himself and was transported to a hospital by medical helicopter; she said this was the third time he had attempted to take his own life.