A suicidal parolee who police said led them on a wild chase through two counties in a stolen car and who fired repeatedly at officers has pleaded guilty to three criminal charges as part of a plea bargain.
Randy Ross Parry, 27, was scheduled for a three-day trial this month, but now will be sentenced June 9.
He pleaded guilty to two counts of aggravated assault, both second-degree felonies, and one count of possession of a dangerous weapon by restricted person, a third-degree felony.
As part of the plea agreement, 3rd District Judge Robin Reese dismissed charges of theft and recklessness involving an incendiary device, both second-degree felonies, and a charge of failure to stop at the command of a police officer, a third-degree felony.
These charges arose after a Jan. 5 incident in which Parry, who was on parole from South Dakota, and Crystal L. Huffman, 30, were tearing around in a stolen car being chased by police through Salt Lake City streets, freeways in Salt Lake County and different roads in Davis County.
Huffman took the wheel and steered the car at times while Parry leaned out the window to shoot at the officers, according to prosecutors.
During the lengthy episode, a West Valley police officer managed to spin the fleeing vehicle to a stop, but while the officer was grabbing a shotgun, Parry managed to restart the car he was in and sped off again.
Huffman, who pleaded guilty as part of a separate plea bargain, become emotional when she learned that a woman had been shot and injured during a carjacking attempt that was part of this crime spree, according to testimony at a 2007 preliminary hearing.
A police officer also testified that Parry had indicated he was suicidal over the idea of going back to prison and had asked Huffman if she would be upset if Parry killed himself. After being captured, Parry also told police there was an explosive device in the car and a bomb squad retrieved a cannister from the vehicle.
Huffman has already pleaded guilty to two counts of attempted aggravated murder and one count of theft, all second-degree felonies. She was sentenced May 4 to two-to-20 years in prison on each of the attempted murder charges and one-to-15 years in prison on the theft charge, with all sentences to run consecutively.
E-mail: lindat@desnews.com