Text message taunts preceded Uintah County slaying, defendant says

VERNAL — Six people are now set to stand trial for the June 18 shooting death of a Roosevelt man that one of the defendants says was instigated by an act of vandalism and taunting text messages.

The claim by Teaunna Cesspooch was recorded by an FBI agent who interviewed her several days after James Edward Carey, 25, was killed and another man was wounded. Portions of that interview were played Wednesday in 8th District Court during a preliminary hearing for Cesspooch and her co-defendant, Bruce Silva.

Silva, 23, is the man police believe fired the fatal shots on June 18 during a confrontation between two groups at a Uintah County home. He is charged with criminal homicide and attempted murder, a first-degree felony, as well as other charges in connection with the incident.

Cesspooch, 19, is charged with murder and attempted murder, both first-degree felonies. She also faces additional felony and misdemeanor charges. Investigators say she drove Silva and his group to and from the home on the night of the shooting, and had possession of the .380-caliber handgun that was used.

In her interview with FBI agent Travis Lemon, Cesspooch claimed Carey had vandalized Silva's car on the day of the shooting, breaking out the vehicle's window. She told Lemon that after the vandalism, Silva's girlfriend, Shadow Reed, began receiving a stream of text messages "challenging (Silva) to fight."

In response to the taunts, a group of people headed to the home where they believed Carey was, Cesspooch told Lemon. Silva and three of his brothers — Adrian Silva, Alberto Silva Jr. and Kevin Silva — had baseball bats, she said. Another member of the group, Colin Ryan Manning, had given her a .380-caliber handgun, which he later took from her when the group reached its destination.

"I handed (the gun) to him, and then things got crazy," Cesspooch told Lemon, adding later, "I just thought he wanted to scare them. I didn't think they wanted to shoot anyone."

Manning told an FBI agent after the incident that Silva grabbed the gun from him and fired it at the people who had come out of the home. His account was supported by Carey's brother, Terry Carey, who spoke to a Uintah County sheriff's deputy in a recorded interview about 20 minutes after the shooting.

A portion of that interview was also played in court Wednesday. Terry Carey, who died in a traffic accident earlier this month, told the deputy one of the people he encountered outside the home had a gun pointed in the air when another man walked over and "stole it" from the first man.