LOGAN — A 37-year-old South Ogden woman has been arrested after she allegedly tried to flee from Logan City police and Utah Highway Patrol troopers, striking several police cruisers during a pursuit, according to officers. Kindy Ann Viator was booked early Friday morning into the Cache County Jail.
According to Logan City Police Lt. Barry Parslow, officers responded to a suspicious person in a vehicle, which led to a chase after the suspect fled. The driver allegedly rammed multiple vehicles and drove at an officer who had exited their vehicle. The pursuit continued, involving collisions with guard rails and ramming law enforcement cruisers, ultimately causing airbags to deploy in one officer’s vehicle.
The suspect, later identified as Viator, was eventually cornered into a business parking lot near 1800 North Main Street, explained Parslow. The South Ogden woman continued to try and flee, entering a second business lot near 2000 North Main Street, before colliding head-on into an officer’s vehicle, and being taken into custody.
Parslow said three officers sustained injuries but are expected to recover. He commended the collaborative efforts of all the law enforcement agencies involved.
Viator was arraigned during a virtual hearing, Friday in Logan’s 1st District Court, appearing by web conference from jail. She was charged with six counts of assault on a peace officer and failing to stop at the command of law enforcement, all second-degree felonies; along with misdemeanors and infractions for failing to remain at an injury accident, reckless driving, and failing to properly stop or yield the right of way. The charges carry a maximum sentence of more than 15 years.
Viator requested a public defender, claiming she was likely going to lose her teaching job after being arrested.
Cache County Deputy Attorney Aaron Jossie asked the court to hold Viator in jail without bail, due to the “severity of the charges.” He called her a “risk to the public.”
Defense attorney Ryan Holdaway said he had reviewed the initial evidence and suspected there may have been a mental health factor at play. He requested bail, noting how the South Ogden woman has no criminal history.
Judge Spencer Walsh agreed with Jossie, saying Viator posed a “substantial danger to people in the community.” He refused to grant the suspect bail, and ordered her to appear again in court July 28.
Individuals arrested and charged in complaints are presumed innocent unless or until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in court.