Utah Supreme Court weighs admissibility of prior sexual‑conduct evidence in State v. Blackwing

SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah Supreme Court heard oral argument in State v. Blackwing over whether a district court improperly excluded most evidence the state says is necessary to explain why three women would agree to plot the murder of a teenager and her family.

At issue is whether material from three categories of prior conduct — the prosecution and underlying facts involving a woman identified in the record as Tina, the facts surrounding the alleged sexual assault of a teenager identified as Catherine, and background showing the defendant’s control over other household members (Raven and Teresa) — are intrinsic to the charged offenses or instead are inadmissible "other‑acts" evidence requiring Rule 404(b)/403 scrutiny.

The state, represented by Christopher Bates, told the justices the excluded evidence is "integral, essential" to its narrative and necessary to explain motive and how the defendant "drew [the women] into his web" and exerted control. "The story of their relationship and the story of why Mr. Blackwing wanted the teenage girl and her family killed are integral essential aspects of the state's case," Bates said. He argued that the excluded material is highly probative of why the women would agree to commit a violent offense the state describes as "one of the most heinous offenses imaginable."

Defense counsel Trevor Lee countered that the notices the state filed were extraordinarily…