CEDAR CITY — Two 17-year-old boys arrested in Las Vegas just hours after they allegedly killed a Cedar City youth counselor will return to Utah to face murder charges.
Sean Graham and Jesse Simmons are accused of striking Anson Arnett, 31, in the head with a baseball bat as he came up a set of stairs in the group home around 10 p.m. on Monday.
Arnett, a counselor for Maximum Life Skills Academy, died Tuesday evening at a Salt Lake hospital after being flown there with head injuries.
Both teens waived their right to an extradition hearing during an appearance before a Las Vegas judge on Friday, said Iron County Attorney Scott Garrett.
"We're coordinating their transfer to Cedar City, but I think it will probably be Monday before we'll be able to go down and get them," Garrett said Friday afternoon, adding he is still weighing a decision on whether he will seek the death penalty against the teens.
Graham and Simmons were charged Wednesday with aggravated murder, a capital offense, and aggravated kidnapping, a first-degree felony. They also face charges of second-degree felony theft for allegedly stealing a company van and driving it to Las Vegas where it was recovered.
The teenagers were enrolled in Maximum Life Skills Academy, a residential youth treatment center for boys ages 12 to 17.