Feds object to man's release in LDS temple shooting plot

A man accused of plotting a shooting rampage at a South Jordan temple for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints will remain in jail pending an emergency appeal by federal prosecutors.

It came after a federal magistrate judge ordered Benjamin Speakman released to a halfway house on Friday. Federal prosecutors fought the move, saying Speakman is an "extreme risk" to the community.

"If we had any opportunity to prevent Columbine or Trolley Square, we would do that," assistant U.S. Attorney Carol Dain said Friday. "The United States is trying to do that."

Speakman, 27, was indicted on a single count of possession of an unregistered sawed-off shotgun. During an appearance in U.S. District Court on Friday, he pleaded not guilty to the charge. U.S. Magistrate Judge Sam Alba scheduled a two-day trial beginning April 27.

Federal prosecutors sought to keep Speakman in custody, saying he is a danger to himself and others. Speakman showed up at Valley Mental Health's Midvale facility on Feb. 2, telling doctors and police that he planned to kill his wife, his mother-in-law and then storm the LDS Church's Jordan River Temple.

"He said he was going to shoot and kill whoever he had to get to the special celestial room," agent Gregory Hopkins with the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives testified Friday, adding that Speakman planned to kill himself inside the temple.

Midvale police said they found a 9mm handgun and a loaded sawed-off shotgun inside Speakman's car. At his home, police said they found an AK-47, more than 200 rounds of ammunition loaded into magazines, handcuffs, four knives, tactical holsters and duct tape.

Speakman told police he dropped out of school, lost his job and stopped taking prescription medications. Federal prosecutors said he cashed a tuition reimbursement check in mid-January and began amassing the guns and ammunition.

But Speakman's attorneys noted that whatever he was plotting, he never carried it out. Instead, he sought help at Valley Mental Health, where he was involuntarily committed to a hospital for nine days until federal authorities had him arrested.

"If he's medicated, if he's in treatment, he's not a danger," said Speakman's attorney, Parker Douglas, asking the judge to let him be released to live with family members.

Speakman's family crowded into the tiny courtroom, at times weeping during the testimony.

"For now, let's address the mental health issues to start with," Alba said, ordering Speakman to a halfway house, mental health treatment and to take prescribed medication. He also forbade him from possessing any weapons.

"You need to be on medication and continue to take it. Treatment as well," the judge said.

When Dain stood to object, Alba told her: "You can appeal if you wish."

Within minutes of Speakman being whisked out of the courtroom under heavy security, a request to stay his release pending an appeal was filed before another judge and signed.

"We felt strongly that detention is very important," said Melodie Rydalch, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Attorney for Utah. "We felt like we needed to appeal the decision to protect the community."

Another hearing on Speakman's release has not yet been scheduled.

E-mail: bwinslow@desnews.com