Daniella Rivera

Questions surround convicted rapist’s release as police investigate aggravated sexual assault

SALT LAKE CITY — In 1998, at the start of his five-to-life sentence, Christopher Browning was ordered to undergo sex offender treatment in prison. It took him 23 years to complete that treatment. Between 2019 and his release from prison last year,…

When home isn’t safe: Experts see patterns, potential warning signs in family shootings

SALT LAKE CITY — The state’s deadliest shooting in recent memory took place in a rural Utah home, where police say Michael Haight killed his five children, their mother and grandmother before taking his own life. The tragedy in Enoch was a grim…

Enoch police, city officials do not intend to review handling of 2020 child abuse investigation

SALT LAKE CITY – Revelations from newly released Enoch Police Department records are sparking sharp reactions among Utahns and questions about whether investigators missed critical red flags ahead of a mass shooting. Two years before Michael Haight…

Police investigated child abuse report 2 years before Enoch murders

SALT LAKE CITY — It can be almost impossible to know what’s going on in someone else’s home. But in 2020, authorities got a sense of the violent and controlling behavior a teen girl said her father carried out over about three years in their house on…

Utah lawmakers call for ‘culture shift,’ budget increase for state’s child welfare system

Over the last several months, the KSL Investigators have spoken with families and advocates who say Utah’s child welfare system isn't serving children as intended. Now, some lawmakers say it's time for big changes. SALT LAKE CITY –- Mia Chase wanted…

Sex assault claims piled up. Little jail time followed. Utahn now called an ‘extreme public safety risk’

SPANISH FORK, Utah — An accused serial predator faced a Davis County judge Tuesday morning. Joshua Homer, 26, appeared remotely from inside the Utah County Jail, where he’s currently being held without bail. For now, that’s where he’ll stay. Homer…

An accused serial predator is back behind bars, but for how long?

A KSL Investigation into Joshua Homer’s past revealed crimes against women spanning the last decade, but sentences amounting to less than a month in jail. Wednesday, the KSL Investigators learned Homer is back behind bars. The question now is how…

Utah woman says justice system failed to protect her from an accused serial predator

SALT LAKE CITY — Vanessa Clark is in disbelief. “I can’t believe that he was able to do what he did,” she told the KSL Investigators. On Nov. 7, Clark reported to law enforcement that she was raped by Joshua Homer, 26, after he invited her over to…

The gift you shouldn’t give car burglars this holiday season

SALT LAKE CITY — It’s the most wonderful time of year. But it’s also when certain crimes of opportunity tend to spike in Salt Lake County. Of all the people on your list to buy presents for, a thief probably isn’t one of them. So don’t give burglars…

How mental health staffing shortages are delaying justice in Utah’s courts

SALT LAKE CITY – As the leaves changed colors and fell last month, Matt Gwyther sat in a park surrounded by the evidence of passing time. “I have this open sore I just want to have closure to,” he said. As fall gave way to winter, Gwyther faced yet…

Utah bill limits how and when police can see your old location data

SALT LAKE CITY — They may not know who you are at first, but police can take just a few steps to find out if your cell phone was near the scene of a crime they’re investigating. A proposal limiting how much of this data law enforcers can collect –…

Violent sexual predators use dating apps as ‘hunting grounds,’ BYU study finds

PROVO, Utah – Online dating is one of the most common ways people meet each other, and wonderful relationships often start through a screen. Unfortunately, new research shows those digital connections can also lead to real-world violence. “We started…

NAACP: Grand Co. Sheriff agrees to diversity training after deputy twirled lasso in search for Black man

SALT LAKE CITY — The Grand County Sheriff’s Office has agreed to hold sensitivity and diversity training following public outcry over a deputy twirling a lasso while searching for a Black man, the head of the NAACP in Utah told KSL. Sheriff Steven…

Utah Highway Patrol: Trooper’s comment to deputy twirling lasso in search for Black man was inappropriate

MOAB, Utah — A trooper’s comment to a Utah sheriff’s deputy who was twirling a lasso while searching for a Black man over the summer was inappropriate and “does not represent the practices” of the Utah Highway Patrol, the agency said Thursday. In…

Utah deputy twirling lasso in search for Black man prompts calls for training, accountability

GRAND COUNTY, Utah – As a Grand County sheriff’s deputy searches for a shoplifting suspect in July, a rope repeatedly pops into view of her body camera, sometimes coiled in her hand and other times twirling in the air ahead of her. A Grand County…

Do costly election security measures hit the mark? KSL investigates

WEBER COUNTY, Utah — When you cast your vote this year, someone — or something — is watching. At every unattended ballot drop box in Utah, you’ll now find an eye in the sky, recording every movement, all day long. Catching fraud? It’s a measure put…

Police restraint under scrutiny after deaths of 2 Utahns held face-down in handcuffs

SALT LAKE CITY — Months apart in different parts of town, Salt Lake City police tried to control people who disregarded their commands and appeared frantic. Police brought Megan Joyce Mohn, 40, to the ground in January; Nykon Brandon, 35, in August.…

KSL Investigation finds few cases of election crimes prosecuted in Utah

SALT LAKE CITY — Concerns about election fraud and election security aren’t going away. A Deseret News poll conducted in January 2022 showed while most Utahns are confident our elections will be fair and accurate this year (81% of respondents,)…

Drug tests deemed ‘not sufficiently reliable’ in one child welfare case are commonly used in Utah

AMERICAN FORK, Utah – A Utah judge ruled that a certain type of drug test was “not sufficiently reliable” in a couple’s legal effort to be reunified with their children, but Utah’s child welfare agency isn’t signaling any plans to stop using the…

Amid increase in youth shooting deaths, Utah pediatricians push for tougher gun laws

The number of Utah children and teens killed by gunfire reached a record high in 2020, in part because of a spike in homicides. Two Utah pediatricians are calling on the state to pass what they see as solutions to the troubling trend. This story is…