SALT LAKE CITY — A federal judge has ruled that accused cop-killer Roberto Roman is not facing double jeopardy, despite being acquitted in state court of murder.
Roman was acquitted in the slaying of Millard Co. Sheriff’s Deputy Josie Greathouse Fox back in 2012. A year later, the U.S. Attorney’s Office filed new charges, including “killing of a local law enforcement officer to avoid apprehension for a felony drug crime.”
Roman’s attorney sought to have the federal indictment dismissed, arguing it was double jeopardy. In the ruling handed down on Tuesday, U.S. District Court Judge David Nuffer disagreed.
“Because the dual sovereignty doctrine has not been overruled by the U.S. Supreme Court, and because the federal charges are not the same as the state charges under which Mr. Roman was previously prosecuted, there is no basis to grant Mr. Roman’s motion to dismiss,” Judge Nuffer wrote.
Read the judge’s ruling here:
Roman was accused of killing Deputy Fox during a traffic stop outside Delta in 2010.
