Man ordered to stand trial in deaths of 2 Tremonton officers

BRIGHAM CITY — The man accused of killing two Tremonton-Garland police officers last year has been ordered to stand trial.

Ryan Michael Bate, 33, is facing the death penalty on two counts of aggravated murder, a capital offense, along with more than a dozen other charges. First District Judge Spencer D. Walsh issued a ruling Thursday, ordering Bate to stand trial in the deaths of Tremonton-Garland police officer Eric Estrada, 32, and Sgt. Lee Sorensen, 56.

Chief deputy attorney Blair T. Wardle explained in closing arguments that the prosecution believes Bate intended to kill the officers who responded.

"This case is about a planned and premeditated ambush that began with the defendant terrorizing his family and ended with him terrorizing the community," Wardle said.

State prosecutors argued in the June preliminary hearings that Bate targeted law enforcement officials who responded to his residence for a domestic violence call on Aug. 17, 2025. During Bate's alleged "rampage," he killed Estrada and Sorenson, and injured Box Elder County sheriff's deputy Mike Allred and his police K-9, Azula, a 3-year-old female Belgian Malinois, prosecutors said.

Similar to his first in-person court appearance in June, Bate was hunched over Thursday, with his head held low throughout the proceedings, never once appearing to lift his eyes. The courtroom was filled with family and supporters of the victims.

In closing statements filed last month, the defense argued prosecutors assembled "a lattice of hearsay, video and investigative conjecture," opining that "no eyewitnesses to any charged act testified in person."

The defense conceded on about half of the charges, but argued the state failed to present "believable evidence" for the essential elements of the other charges, instead filing gaps "with narrative, not evidence."

For example, on the first charge of attempted aggravated murder, which stemmed from the initial gunshot at Sorenson's vehicle, the defense said Bate's actions on the first shot are "more consistent with drunken bravado, a warning shot, or an impaired man's expression of rage than with a conscious objective to kill."

But Wardle claimed the evidence shows "there is no dispute" in the intent of Bate's actions that night.

He referenced an interview with Bate's wife, who explained Bate had assaulted and threatened her, then said he would kill any cops who came to the house.

Bate's wife had sent a photo of her injuries to her friend the night of the incident, who then told her she should record what was going on, prosecutors explained in June. In those recordings, Bate repeatedly expresses his intent to murder officers, saying he will "send them away in caskets," Wardle said at the preliminary hearing.

Wardle replayed clips from the interview on Thursday, where she explained Bate was "obviously drunk" and didn't expect him to do anything, but then she was shocked when he pulled the trigger.

"This is more than just probable cause; this is beyond a reasonable doubt about what his intent truly was on that first shot," Wardle said Thursday. "That is what makes this attempted aggravated murder, because he wanted to kill — that was his intent. He made that very much clear."

In three of the recordings the wife took that night, Bate reiterated eight times that "I am not going to jail," and two of the times said it was because he was going to die, Wardle said.

"He was clear. By whatever means necessary, he was not going to go to jail," Wardle said. "If the defendant would rather die than go to jail, then there would be no need to murder the officers; it doesn't make sense; ... It only makes sense that he would try to kill officers if he was trying to avoid arrest."

Wardle ended his closing arguments with one more clip, where Bate said, "If they show up, then I'll kill them. Every single one of them."

The prosecution amended the charges filed against Bate, condensing the two attempted aggravated murder charges, which stemmed from the two gunshots at Allred, into one charge.

The move also trimmed down some of the aggravating factors on the two counts of aggravated murder for the deaths of the officers and the attempted aggravated murder charge for the shot that hit a fleeing neighbor's vehicle. Two of the domestic violence-related misdemeanors were also reduced to a lower class.

Bate was bound over on all 18 charges: two counts of aggravated murder, a capital offense, three counts of attempted aggravated murder, a first-degree felony; endangering a police service dog, a third-degree felony; three counts of possessing an explosive, a second-degree felony; two counts of possession of a dangerous weapon with criminal intent, class A misdemeanors; and unlawful detention and threatening violence, two counts of domestic violence-related assault and three counts of domestic violence in the presence of a child, class B misdemeanors.

Walsh said while there is sufficient evidence to bind Bate over on all 18 charges, there was "insufficient evidence" for some of the aggravating factors which should be reconsidered.

Defense attorney Jonathan Nish said the defense would prefer the trial not be until late summer or early fall next year to give them more time to prepare. Wardle said he would like to have the trial "as soon as possible."

A status conference was scheduled for Oct. 20.

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