Retired Utah judge found dead at his home

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Retired 3rd District Judge Stephen L. Henriod, who served 16 years on the bench in Salt Lake and Tooele counties, was found dead at his Cottonwood Heights home on Thursday.

He was 67.

Cottonwood Heights police Sgt. Ryan Shosted said police were called to Henriod's home in the early morning hours on Thursday.

"The death is not suspicious and is being investigated," said Shosted.

Utah Supreme Court Chief Justice Matthew Durrant said Thursday in a statement: "We are saddened by the passing of our colleague Judge Stephen L. Henriod. We are thankful for his 16 years of service to the Utah State Courts and the people of Utah. We extend our sympathies to his family."

Henriod was appointed to the 3rd District Court in November 1994 by Gov. Mike Leavitt.

Henriod, who received a law degree from the University of Utah College of Law in 1975, was in private practice from 1975 until he took the oath of office in January 1995.

He retired on Dec. 31, 2010.

During his career on the bench, Henriod handled hundreds of criminal cases and was one of the 3rd District judges who presided over drug court, which emphasizes treatment over incarceration.

Henriod's own actions became the subject of several news stories.

In 2008, he abruptly stepped down in the middle of a robbery trial because of a "comment" he made that led someone attached to the case to accuse him of bias. Shortly after, Henriod, who had worked in Salt Lake County, was reassigned to the Tooele County bench. Court officials said at the time they did not know the specifics of the comment, nor the context in which it was made.

In 2006, Henriod apologized for telling a woman with seven dogs that she should have shot five of them rather than return to court in blatant violation of a Herriman city ordinance, which allowed only two dogs. Henriod said during court that he was a pet lover and did not wish any harm to come to the dogs.

In April 2005, Henriod was hospitalized in an intensive care unit on a cardiac ward following the last of three suicide-related visits by police to his home that year.

He returned to the bench in May 2005, after being cleared for duty by the 3rd District Court's presiding judge, who required Henriod to submit a letter from his therapist indicating he was mentally able to return to work. Henriod also agreed to ongoing counseling.