Court records that became publicly available Thursday describe allegations that a 39-year-old man broke a woman’s jaw, punched a 15-year-old boy who tried to stop him assulting the woman, then threatened to kill them both during a confrontation in Baggs.
Casey Brown faces charges of aggravated assault and battery, felony child abuse and unlawful contact. His case has been bound over to Carbon County District Court.
The allegations stem from a dispute over a woman’s vehicle that escalated into repeated punches and Brown allegedly swinging her by a lanyard around her neck, Carbon County Undersheriff Shawn Kelley wrote in an affidavit supporting the charges.
Investigators later confirmed the woman’s jaw was broken and would require surgery.
Dispute Over Keys
Carbon County Sheriff’s Sgt. Chris Fischer was dispatched to a report of a domestic disturbance with injuries at a home in Baggs on Sept. 3. He drove from Saratoga and arrived to find two alleged victims and a witness inside an ambulance.
The woman told Fischer she and Brown were sitting in her car when he said he wanted to take it.
She said Brown did not have a driver’s license and was not allowed to drive. She also told Fischer he had been talking about his wife, though he did not have one, Kelley wrote.
The confrontation began when Brown pushed his face into hers and she pushed him away, she told the sergeant.
She said Brown then punched her three times with a closed fist, striking the side of her face and her forehead.
Teen Intervenes
The 15-year-old boy opened the car door and pulled Brown out of the vehicle during the confrontation, Kelley wrote.
The teen told Fischer that Brown punched him in the face with a closed fist. He also believed Brown scratched the right side of his neck while attempting to punch him.
Kelley described redness on the boy’s face as “early onset to bruising.”
The woman said she stepped between Brown and the teen.
She said was wearing a lanyard around her neck. Brown grabbed it and “was swinging her around trying to take the keys,” Kelley wrote, recounting her statement.
Then Brown punched her again on the right side of her face, which the woman believed was the blow that broke her jaw.
During the confrontation, Brown told them “he was going to kill them all,” Kelley wrote.
She said she believed the threat was real and that he had never acted like that.
The woman told Fischer she managed to get away from Brown, and they were able to get him to walk away.
Riverbed Search
While Fischer spoke with the woman inside the ambulance, a bystander spotted Brown heading back toward the home.
“As soon as she pointed him out, Defendant ran from law enforcement towards a riverbed where he was able to avoid law enforcement,” Kelley wrote.
Officers spent several hours searching for Brown.
Another witness farther up the street told a game warden someone had run north.
An arrest warrant was issued the following day.
Broken Jaw
The woman later left the ambulance and drove to a Colorado hospital, Kelley wrote.
She had swelling and bruising on both sides of her face, along with a bruise and lump on her forehead. Kelley also described a rub burn that was likely caused by Brown pulling on the lanyard around her neck. Doctors confirmed her jaw was broken.
Investigators photographed her injuries and the teen’s injuries.
Brown made his initial appearance Sept. 8. His case was bound over to district court Sept. 16.
Sarah Chavez Harkins is prosecuting the case, and John J. Learned represents Brown. District Judge Dawnessa Snyder has been assigned to the matter.
The Carbon County District Court said it received the case Wednesday, and that an arraignment date will be set in the next couple of weeks.
Brown’s bond is set at $25,000 cash only.
Kolby Fedore can be reached at kolby@cowboystatedaily.com.
