Lives cut short -- Car flees Ogden police, kills 2 young men in

0 Comments | Deseret News (Salt Lake City), Apr 24, 2009 | by Ben Winslow

OGDEN -- They had bright futures, tragically cut short.

Derek Jasper was anxiously awaiting his LDS mission call -- the letter was supposed to arrive in the mail next week. His roommate, Blake Strebel, was a Weber State University student also wanting to go on a mission someday, but he first had his eyes on his associate degree so he could pursue his lifelong dream of a career in law enforcement when he returned.

The young men were killed late Wednesday when a car fleeing from Ogden police ran a red light and slammed into their car at the intersection of 28th Street and Washington Boulevard. They were returning to their 25th Street apartment after playing basketball.

Jasper's mother, Jennifer, had spoken with her 18-year-old son just minutes before he died.

"I called him to see how he was doing," she said as she sat on the couch of her Ogden home, surrounded by family members.

At 19-year-old Blake Strebel's family home in South Jordan, they were also in shock.

"Our eyes have been red with crying. We're not over that. I don't think we'll be over that for quite some time because Blake was a very fine young man. We're very sorry to see him leave this Earth," said Strebel's grandfather, John Strebel.

The two suspected in their deaths were both in the hospital for most of the day Thursday, but police officers arrested them once they were released from the hospital. Ogden police said Mark Mora, 17, and Andrew Gomez, 21, are suspected of committing a home burglary Tuesday on the city's east bench. Neighbors saw the attempted break-in and confronted the two, who fled the scene in a Cadillac.

The next night, a police officer on patrol in downtown Ogden spotted the Cadillac and attempted to pull it over, but the car took off.

"Traffic was very light and the conditions were in keeping with the Ogden Police Department's pursuit policy," assistant police chief Randy Watt said Thursday. "The vehicle stayed in the residential area and made numerous changes in direction at the same relative speeds."

At 28th Street and Jefferson Avenue, police said, the Cadillac accelerated. When it reached Washington Boulevard, police said the Cadillac ran a red light, striking a Mitsubishi Lancer driven by Blake Strebel. Both were killed instantly.

Inside the Cadillac, Mora was incapacitated. Police said Gomez ran from the crash site across a parking lot before being captured.

Mora remained in the Weber Valley Detention Center Thursday evening, but Gomez posted bail and was released from the Weber County Jail, according to Ogden Police.

Outside the Ogden Police Department on Thursday, relatives of Mora and Gomez cried over the tragic deaths -- but said the police should be blamed for it.

"I'm sorry this happened," cried Stacey Mora, Gomez's mother. "I'm so sorry for the families."

The family complained that Ogden police should not have given chase but struggled to explain why Mora and Gomez fled.

"They could have just followed them instead of chasin' them down like they were Jesse James. It wouldn't have happened," sobbed Eddie Mora, the young men's grandfather. "The police were wrong."

Watt said Mora and Gomez are both known gang members with criminal histories. Mark Mora's mother, Virginia, insisted that her son "is not a bad person" and denied they were even involved in a burglary.

"Two kids lost their lives. That should not have happened. The police should not have chased them," she said Thursday.

Watt dismissed the family's criticism, saying: "We're used to those scurrilous things being said about us."

Neither the Strebel nor Jasper families said they were upset with police for what happened.

"We want to see the police get the bad guys," said David Jasper, Derek's father.

"Blake knew the challenges of law enforcement; he had studied it intensely. Our law enforcement have a tough job. We expect them to apprehend and ensure justice is served," said Tim Strebel, Blake's father. "Blake would have forgiven these two young men, I think. I feel sorry for their families. I feel sorry for these two young men that they have to live with that."

The pursuit will be reviewed internally, but Watt defended his agency saying the entire chase lasted about two minutes, not enough time for the officer's superiors to even make a decision about whether to terminate a pursuit.

"There are no indications that the officer did anything wrong," Watt said, adding that she has been returned to duty.

The Utah Highway Patrol and the Weber County attorney will investigate the crash to determine what type of charges should be filed. It could range from evading to negligent or automobile homicide, he said.

At the Jasper home, visitors came and went, offering their condolences and words of comfort. David and Jennifer Jasper were clearly shaken by the sudden and tragic loss of their son, but they reflected on his life. They described him as someone who befriended everyone and was always willing to help someone in need.

"He was the most loving and caring boy," Jennifer Jasper said.

Derek Jasper had quit school to prepare to serve a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He and Strebel worked together at a local Domino's Pizza. Blake Strebel was remembered by friends and family Thursday as a man who wanted to go into law enforcement to follow in the footsteps of his uncle who was a Utah Highway Patrol trooper and Wasatch County sheriff's deputy.