Wood shot at police, jury says Five-time parolee faces life term after chase BY TIM GURRISTER Standard-Examiner staff tgurrister@standard.net OGDEN Deliberating late Friday night, a 2nd District Court jury found Brian Wood guilty on all counts for opening fire on police during a highspeed chase. Chief among the charges were three attempted aggravated murder counts, one for each officer shot at Jan. 6, 2004, during the chase. All are first-degree felonies that carry a five years to life prison term. The trial began Wednesday, and the case went to the jury by 6 p.m. Friday. The jury came back with its verdict shortly after 10 p.m. Wood was sought by officers with a warrant charging him in a Davis County stabbing a charge still pending when he fled police in Brigham City. Officers had filled a McDonald's restaurant there near the town's 1100 South freeway entrance with plainclothes officers poised to arrest Wood once he was lured there. Instead, Wood fled, hitting speeds above 100 mph southbound on Inter-state 15 in the middle of the afternoon rush hour. Wood, in his girlfriend's gold Nissan 280 Z, shot at Clearfield Detective Mike Valencia, Davis parole officer Kim Holden, then-Utah Highway Patrol Trooper Don Sagendorf, and a private citizen, Frank Dawson, of Layton. The only injuries in the episode were cuts to Wood and officers wrestling with him as he resisted handcuffing after the chase. Spike strips took out his tires on 1-15 near 12th Street, causing the car to go off the road. After exiting the vehicle, Wood threw his handgun aside, according to testimony, but stayed facedown on the asphalt with his hands under his stomach. The numerous officers who converged on him had to forcibly pull his arms out to handcuff him. The defense attempted to convince the jury that Wood shot only at vehicles and never had the intent to kill anyone. But that was apparently countered by a tattoo Wood carries, with the likeness of the defendant holding a gun in a police officer's mouth. Wood's sentencing is set for August before 2nd District Judge Scott Hadley. Wood, 38, was paroled in fall 2003, his fifth parole in 15 years. He has been in prison on drugs and weapons charges much of his adult life.