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Provo • Family members of slain Utah County sheriff's Sgt. Cory Wride and injured Deputy Greg Sherwood were somber as they quietly filed out of a small Provo courtroom early Saturday after 18-year-old Meagan Dakota Grunwald was found guilty of a slew of crimes — including aggravated murder and attempted aggravated murder.
No one cheered. No one celebrated that jurors found her culpable for her role when she drove her truck last year while her 27-year-old boyfriend, later fatally shot by police, shot out the back window at Wride, Sherwood and others.
No matter the outcome, there was no winning in this situation, they said. Wride is still gone. Sherwood will still have the scar on his head that hints at the trauma and struggle he continues to go through after he was shot on that snowy Jan. 30 day last year.
But Wride's mother, Kathy Wride, said after the verdict was read at 1 a.m. on Saturday that there need to be consequences for actions, and the guilty verdicts were just that.
"I am heartbroken for her family," the soft-spoken woman said. "It's a sad day for them and it doesn't bring our son back."
An eight-person jury — six women and two men — deliberated for 11 hours before reaching their verdict. They found Grunwald not guilty of just one charge — the attempted aggravated murder of Utah Highway Patrol Trooper Jeff Blankenagel, who was shot at that day but was not struck.
Grunwald will be sentenced on July 8, and is facing a mandatory 25-year-to-life prison sentence. Fourth District Judge Darold McDade could also sentence her to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Grunwald appeared stunned as the guilty verdict for the aggravated murder charge was read. Her mother, Tori Grunwald, sobbed openly and yelled, "She's innocent!" as family members led her from the courtroom weeping.
As the jury's guilty verdict for the attempted aggravated murder of Sherwood was read, the deputy became emotional, his eyes red and brimming with tears.
"It's not a good ending for anyone," he said as he left the courthouse Saturday. "But we're glad to have this behind us and we can move forward and figure out the new us. It's a sad situation; it's not a great end for anybody."
Deputy Utah County Attorney Sam Pead said Saturday that he spoke with jurors after they reached their decision, and they said they didn't believe Grunwald's testimony — that she was threatened by Jose Angel Garcia-Jauregui and drove out of fear for her life.
"It certainly was just," Pead said of the verdict. "…There are no winners here. We don't get any pleasure out of a long-term consequence for Ms. Grunwald, but that's the law and this is just. She participated in these crimes meaningfully enough that she was legally culpable."
Grunwald's attorney, Dean Zabriskie, said his client was devastated, and said they plan to file an appeal.
"We're very, very disappointed," he said. "Do we agree with it? Of course we don't. Do we accept it? Of course we do."
Along with the first-degree felony charges of aggravated murder and attempted aggravated murder, Grunwald was also found guilty of first-degree felony aggravated robbery, three counts of felony discharge of a firearm, two charges of criminal mischief and one count each of causing an accident involving property damage, failure to stop at the command of police and possession or use of a controlled substance.
Grunwald testified over two days this week, telling jurors that Garcia-Jauregui threatened her with a gun, and that she acted as the getaway driver only out of fear. But prosecutors say she was compelled by love and loyalty that day.
Pead said during his closing argument Friday that Grunwald's actions speak louder than words and that her actions "scream out" her intent.
"Her actions are so motivated and responsive, they can only come from love," Pead said. "They do not match a claim of compulsion."
Pead pointed to police dashboard camera recordings and witness testimony as evidence to counter Grunwald's claims that she was threatened. This evidence included video footage showing Grunwald chasing after Garcia-Jauregui twice, after her truck and later a hijacked vehicle were both disabled. It also showed her skillful driving and sudden braking to close the gap between her truck and Sherwood's vehicle as her boyfriend shot him in Santaquin.
Witnesses described how distraught she was after police fatally wounded Garcia-Jauregui — calling them "f—ing assholes" and yelling, "You f—ing shot him in the head!"
Pead also accused the teen of downplaying her relationship with Garcia-Jauregui while she was on the stand this week, and said she lied about her role as an alleged accomplice. Even before trial, Pead said, the girl repeatedly lied to family members, friends and police officers about the seriousness of her relationship.
"She has lied and lied and lied," Pead said. "And most of her lies are about she and Jose Angel Garcia's relationship … She's no novice at storytelling. She gives many half-truths that, counted together, is a whole lot of lies."
Grunwald testified that on Jan. 30, 2014 — while on a drive with Garcia-Jauregui — he learned during a phone call that the parole board had issued an warrant for his arrest.
As they were stopped at the side of the road in Utah County, Wride happened to pull up to see if they needed help. When Wride asked their names, Garcia-Jauregui gave a false name.
As Wride checked their information in his patrol vehicle, Garcia-Jauregui told Grunwald that if she didn't do what he said, he would shoot her and kill her family, the teen testified.
Soon after, Garcia-Jauregui killed Wride, 44, by shooting out the rear window of Grunwald's pickup truck. Wride's dashboard camera video shows the white truck speed off as shots are fired.
Later that day, Garcia-Jauregui shot and severely wounded Sherwood in Santaquin. And nearly two hours after Wride was shot, Garcia-Jauregui was fatally wounded by other officers during a shootout in Nephi.
During his two-hour closing argument Friday, Zabriskie accused prosecutors of making Grunwald "a sacrifice" since Garcia-Jauregui is not alive to face charges. But Deputy Utah County Attorney Tim Taylor said that wasn't the case.
"Without a doubt, if Jose Angel Garcia had [survived], Jose Angel Garcia and Meagan Grunwald would be sitting right here, right now," he said. "She is not the sacrificial lamb."
Taylor told jurors that under Utah law, an accomplice is charged with the same crimes and is equally responsible.
"If you intentionally assist another, you are as guilty as if you had done every single act yourself," he said. "Including pulling the trigger."
Many members of Wride's family, including his wife, Nannette Wride, were not at the Provo courthouse as the verdict was read Saturday. She and other family members are headed to Washington, D.C., to watch Wride's name be added to the National Law Enforcement Memorial next week. Nannette Wride — who tweeted "Justice is served!!" Saturday morning — was preparing to ride in the four-day Unity Tour bike ride, which began Saturday, in her husband's honor.
Twitter: @jm_miller