Utah Court of Appeals vacates Cedar City woman’s convictions, orders new trial

The Utah Court of Appeals on Aug. 14, 2025, vacated the convictions of Jennifer Lynn McCraw and remanded the case for a new trial, finding that her trial counsel provided constitutionally ineffective assistance by failing to move for a directed verdict after the prosecution presented no evidence that the damaged plates belonged to someone other than McCraw. Judge Michele M. Christiansen Forster wrote the opinion, which Judges Gregory K. Orme and David N. Mortensen concurred in.

The ruling matters because the criminal mischief charge—an essential element of the domestic-violence-in-the-presence-of-a-child count—requires proof that the defendant "intentionally damage[d], deface[d], or destroy[ed] the property of another," language found in Utah Code § 76-6-106(2)(c) as it applied in 2021. The appeals court concluded the prosecution’s proffer at trial did…