HBO show to feature probe into deaths of 2 Murray men

A high-profile Utah drunken-driving case will be featured on an HBO show called "Autopsy" when the cable show kicks off its ninth season Feb. 16.

A segment titled "Dead Awakening" spotlights the investigation into the deaths of two Murray men who were killed three years ago when a pickup truck with a drunken driver behind the wheel slammed into the back of their Jeep at the intersection of 3500 South and 3200 West. The Jeep rolled and burst into flames, killing Casey Dugdale, 19, and Christopher Oseguera, 18. A third Murray teen, Aaron Sharples, was critically injured.

HBO producer Gaby Monet said she chose the case because of ground-breaking techniques West Valley police detective Joe McCuen used to capture evidence from a vehicle air bag, which helped to solve the case.

"Autopsy" profiles unique cases from across the United States and looks at the forensic sciences involved in solving them. In Utah, the program will air at 11 p.m., Feb. 16, on the HBO channel programmed by AT&T cable systems.

"It was a new way of solving a crime that we hadn't seen before," Monet said. "We try to show some form of forensic science that we haven't shown. In this case it turned out very well."

When the early-morning crash occurred in January 2000, the driver ran away from the burning Jeep rather than help the victims. That left investigators with the task of proving who was driving the truck when the accident occurred.

Although Paul Upwall was arrested the next day in connection with the crash, McCuen spent long hours collecting evidence. During the course of discussions with now retired West Valley City Police Lt. Charles Illsley — himself a national leader in forensics — the two men decided to use a laser to look for evidence on the air bag of Upwall's truck.

The laser revealed 75 fibers invisible to the naked eye, including a nearly invisible piece of hair and a sample of facial hair embedded in the air bag. Investigators were able to match fibers from the air bag to Upwall and the clothes he was wearing that night.

In December 2000, Upwall was sentenced to 20 years in prison on a conviction for automobile homicide and driving under the influence.

McCuen and Illsley flew to Manhattan recently to be interviewed for the show. So did Sharples, who was a friend of Dugdale's and Oseguera's who survived the crash but had severe emotional and physical injuries.

Deb Hudson, Christopher Oseguera's aunt, was worried when she learned of the program. She consulted an attorney.