LOGAN — A 35-year-old Logan man was sentenced Wednesday to 15 years to life in prison for fatally stabbing his 77-year-old father and abandoning his body in Logan Canyon.
Clayton Robert Shaw appeared in 1st District Court in Logan after previously pleading guilty with a mental condition to murder, a first-degree felony.
The body of Dennis Shaw was discovered Sept. 26, 2024, in the Franklin Basin parking lot with multiple stab wounds to the chest. Cache County sheriff’s deputies reported the elder Shaw appeared to have been dragged and placed at the site.
Prosecutors said Clayton Shaw had been served an eviction notice in July 2024 from a property owned by his father or his father’s trust. Dennis Shaw previously told authorities his son had come to his home during a mental health crisis, confiscated his phone, and threatened his life.
The day after the body was discovered, deputies conducting surveillance at Dennis Shaw’s residence watched Clayton Shaw knock on the door and drive away. Officers initiated a high-risk traffic stop, locating a knife matching the victim’s wounds. A subsequent vehicle search yielded a used bottle of hydrogen peroxide, drops of human blood in the trunk, and a bloody fingerprint on the rear bumper.
During Wednesday’s sentencing hearing, defense attorney Michael McGinnis asked the court to commit his client to the Utah State Hospital instead of prison, arguing Shaw’s mental health had deteriorated severely before the slaying.
“I don’t see him as a danger as long as his mental health is addressed and treated,” McGinnis said.
Shaw addressed the court, claiming he had experienced narcissistic abuse from his father that caused extreme social isolation. He said voices in his head commanded him to drive his father’s body into Logan Canyon after the stabbing, adding that he only began to grasp what he had done after being jailed.
Cache County Deputy Attorney Griffin Hazard argued that while Shaw suffered from mental illness, there was no evidence of active delusions during the murder. Hazard added that medical evaluators noted the defendant may have exaggerated symptoms in an attempt to secure a lighter sentence.
First District Judge Brian Cannell ruled that Shaw presented a significant danger to the community and required incarceration, where mental health treatment could continue. Cannell sentenced Shaw to the statutory maximum of 15 years to life in the Utah State Correctional Facility, granting 760 days of credit for time served.
“The parole board will decide when and if you are ever released,” Cannell told Shaw as bailiffs led him from the courtroom.