PROVO, Utah — The mother of one of two toddlers killed after a car crashed into the Eagle Mountain corral where they were playing became emotional as she testified on the opening day of the trial for the man charged in their deaths.
"It was like they knew each other from day one," said Theresa Ratliff of her son, Odin, and his friend, Hunter Jackson.
Kent Cody Barlow was arrested and charged with two counts of first-degree felony murder in the May 2022 deaths of Hunter and Odin, both of whom were three years old. Barlow is also being tried on one count of possession or use of a controlled substance.
Jury selection was completed early Thursday, and the trial began inside a Provo courtroom with Barlow's attorney immediately making a plea to jurors that the incident was not murder but an "unintentional accident."
In his opening statement in front of Judge Derek Pullan and the jury, lead prosecutor Ryan McBride said Barlow "left a wake of destruction" in his path, adding that the friends were doing what they always did: they "went to play."
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As the opening statement continued, McBride shared how Jackson's sister was the first one to see the boys who were trapped underneath the collapsed roof of the corral. Ratliff's mother then began CPR on Odin, but both boys had no vital signs.
Law enforcement had previously explained that Barlow's car did not actually hit the two boys directly. Instead, the vehicle hit the corral they were playing in, causing the roof to collapse.
The boys were at the Cedar Valley Stables with family who were teaching or involved in a horse vaulting class on the property.
McBride said police "were racing against time" as the sun went down and prioritized the lives of the boys over collecting evidence, admitting some evidence was missed at the time.
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After the prosecution finished, Barlow's defense attorney, Justin Morrison, said his client's case was "unique" and that he "would not say my client is innocent," asking jurors to hold Barlow accountable.
Morrison added that he does not dispute the facts of the case that will be brought up, but hopes jurors will "look beyond the heartbreak, emotion and tragedy." Morrison said the incident was not murder but an unintentional accident.
Just before he finished his opening statement, Morrison admitted that his client was driving too fast and that he was under the influence, and that he lost control and crashed into the stable.
"I know this case pulls at your heartstrings," he said. "I feel it, too."
After a mid-afternoon break, Theresa Ratliff took the stand, getting emotional when a photo was shown of her and her son. She shared how Odin would go to the stables where the corral was located 4-5 times a week and formed a quick friendship with Hunter.
Ratliff said on the day of the accident, she heard something that sounded like "thunder, like metal on metal for a solid 4 or 5 seconds." Not knowing what the sound was, Theresa handed her horse to someone else so she could look for Odin.
After seeing her son on the ground, Ratliff saw Odin had "no life in him" but performed CPR for a minute anyway. Once realizing her son had died, Ratliff said she remembers screaming before sitting with Odin and holding him.
