Man who threatened highway trooper with knife pleads no contest

HEBER CITY — A man who threatened a Utah Highway Patrol trooper with a knife pleaded no contest last month and will not serve any jail time.

Brody Joe Phelps, 35, of Duchesne, was charged in May in 4th District Court with assault on a police officer, a second-degree felony; interfering with police, a class B misdemeanor; and following another vehicle too closely, an infraction.

On May 3, a UHP trooper responded to a crash on U.S. 40 near Strawberry Reservoir. Phelps had rear-ended another vehicle, according to a police booking affidavit.

"The suspect had dilated eyes and was shaking periodically during our conversations. He became more focused the further our conversation went on where he stated he gets seizures and blacks out from time to time and that this incident occurred from him blacking out," the trooper noted in the affidavit.

As the trooper was talking with Phelps, he "became unresponsive and began to walk away along the highway. I then came up and told him to stop multiple times. He ignored my commands until I got in front of his path, and I observed he had his left hand in his pocket. I told him to take his hand out of his pocket where he then pulled out a knife and opened it on me," the affidavit states.

The trooper pulled out his firearm and continued to back up as Phelps walked toward him "and swung the blade around a few times ignoring multiple commands to put the knife down and to stop moving," the affidavit says. "I was backing up the whole time while giving commands."

The trooper says he retreated about 850 feet with Phelps "advancing on me the whole time."

At that point, a passerby stopped and tried to help the trooper by pointing his own gun at Phelps. Phelps then put the knife back in his pocket but continued walking toward the trooper.

Once the knife was back in his pocket, both the trooper and the passerby tackled Phelps, but Phelps "resisted us holding his arms to put them behind his back and was trying to get his left hand back in the pocket with the knife. The suspect was then placed into handcuffs and was put on his side, where he then began having a seizure," the affidavit states.

By this point, "multiple civilians had stopped" to help, one of them being a nurse who assisted until emergency medical crews arrived.

"I believe due to possible mental problems, the suspect is prone to violence, especially when he goes into his 'blackout' state of mind and is quick to using force against others," the trooper wrote.

Police noted in the May arrest report that Phelps had pleaded guilty on April 20 to disorderly conduct, an infraction. The plea was to be held in abeyance for a year. He was originally charged with assault, a class B misdemeanor, according to court records.

On Aug. 19, Phelps submitted a no-contest plea for a reduced charge of assault on an officer, a class A misdemeanor. The other two charges were dismissed, and his plea will be held in a period of abeyance for two years.

"I did threaten violence against an officer, verbally and with a knife," Phelps said in his plea statement.

As part of the agreement, Phelps must not break any laws and must pay $1,851.18 in restitution and maintain taking the proper doses of his epilepsy medication. If he successfully completes the abeyance period, then the plea will be withdrawn, and the case will be dismissed.

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