Opinion ID: 2590797
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: the aftermath

Text: ¶ 10 At the time of the murders, Pinder owned a significant quantity of explosives, which he stored in caves relatively close to the ranch house. After their brief stop at the ranch house, Pinder and Ruiz drove to the caves and retrieved multiple bags of ammonium nitrate and several pieces of dynamite. Upon loading the explosives into the truck, Pinder and Ruiz returned to the site of the murders and began preparations to destroy the bodies of Flood and Tanner, as well as the rifle Pinder had taken from Flood's home. ¶ 11 Pinder piled the explosives on and around the victims, and placed the stolen rifle on top of the bodies. He then set off the explosion and returned to the ranch house with Ruiz. Once at the ranch house, Pinder cleaned his gun and burned the clothes he and Ruiz had been wearing that evening. ¶ 12 The following day, Pinder returned to the blast site and bulldozed the area until his bulldozer ran out of fuel. Later that night, Pinder, Ruiz, and DeHart went to Brunyer's residence for dinner. On their way to dinner, the group picked up several black bags, which they transported to the ranch dump and burned. Pinder informed Ruiz that the bags contained one of Tanner's legs and a shoe. After dinner, Pinder and Ruiz continued their efforts to rid the ranch of evidence, collecting additional body parts in black bags, which they then placed in a barrel located away from the site of the initial detonation. They destroyed the barrel using explosives. ¶ 13 The following morning, Brunyer became involved in the effort to cover up the double murder. Brunyer arrived at the ranch in order to do some welding, but Pinder requested that he first retrieve a fuel truck from Tanner's trailer in order to refuel the bulldozer Pinder had used in his efforts to bury evidence and disguise the blast site. Brunyer left with Wallen to comply with the request, but was stopped by Ruiz as he and Wallen were returning to the ranch house with the fuel truck. Ruiz spoke briefly with Wallen, who was driving the fuel truck, before Wallen continued driving to the ranch. After Wallen's departure, Ruiz approached Brunyer. Ruiz handed Brunyer some paper towels and a bottle of rubbing alcohol and told him that Pinder needed him to wipe down Flood's home to remove any fingerprints. Per Pinder's instructions, Brunyer and Ruiz first went to the ranch house to drop off Pinder's truck, which Ruiz had been driving, and then returned to Flood's home in Brunyer's truck. ¶ 14 After attempting to clean Flood's home of fingerprints, Brunyer and Ruiz drove to the site of the murders and helped Pinder refuel the bulldozer, further disguise the blast site, and remove evidence. While at the blast site, Brunyer discovered a relatively large portion of Tanner's torso, to which Tanner's head remained attached. However, Brunyer did not draw attention to his discovery, disturb the remains, or tell Ruiz or Pinder about it. After learning of the murders and aiding in the cover-up, Brunyer feared for his life and spent the subsequent three nights in his wood stack with his rifle. ¶ 15 Soon after these events, a friend of Flood expressed her concern that Flood was missing, and a police investigation was initiated. Thereafter, while pursuing the investigation, Sergeant Wallace Hendricks entered Flood's home. He found the residence in disarray. The refrigerator was pulled away from the wall, pots and pans were on the floor, and blood stained the backrest of a living room chair and the sheets of a fold-out bed. ¶ 16 After leaving Flood's home, Sergeant Hendricks noticed a group of people standing around a nearby trailer and stopped to determine if anyone had information about the whereabouts of Flood or Tanner. Brunyer was among the members of the group and asked Sergeant Hendricks for a business card. ¶ 17 A short time later, Sergeant Hendricks was informed that Brunyer had been phoning dispatch, expressing his desire to talk to the police. Sergeant Hendricks made arrangements to have Brunyer taken to the sheriff's office. When Brunyer arrived, he presented Sergeant Hendricks with the bottle of rubbing alcohol used to clean Flood's home and a letter, prepared by Brunyer's daughter, reporting Brunyer's version of the events he had witnessed. Sergeant Hendricks described Brunyer as [v]ery agitated, very nervous, scared to death. ¶ 18 After speaking with Brunyer, Sergeant Hendricks organized a search of the site of the murders. The investigation culminated in the arrests of Ruiz and Pinder. Ruiz pleaded guilty to two counts of murder and disclosed information about the second blast site where evidence was destroyed. ¶ 19 Pinder was ultimately charged and convicted on eleven felony counts. [2] After his conviction, Pinder moved for a new trial, which the trial court denied. Pinder now appeals that ruling. We have jurisdiction pursuant to Utah Code section 78-2-2(3)(i) (2002).