Killers of Dove Creek man dispute conviction

Killers of Dove Creek man dispute conviction

Dec. 1, 2001

by Aspen C. Emmett
Journal Staff Writer

Two convicted killers from Dove Creek made an appeal Thursday to the Utah Supreme Court to overturn their convictions for fatally shooting their "best friend" 19 times and leaving his body on a remote county road near Monticello in April of 1999.

Brothers Terril and Jordan Calliham, 19- and 22-years old respectively now, were convicted of criminal homicide in January of 2000 by a San Juan County, Utah jury. Both were ordered to serve 15-years to life in prison for the death of 18-year-old Dolores County High School senior James "Casey" Eaton.

According to Paul Murphy of the Utah Attorney General’s Office, the two brothers claim their appeals are based on three main arguments: They should have been tried separately; the court should have ordered a psychiatric evaluation of the girlfriend who testified against the two; and the judge should not have removed a close family friend and an attorney who helped consult on the case as prospective jurors.

The judge is not expected to rule on the appeal for at least two months, according to Murphy.

Utah Assistant Attorney General Jeff Gray argued before the Utah Supreme Court that the defendants agreed to a single trial after the judge limited what the jury could hear about their jail house confessions, according to Murphy.

Additionally, Gray reportedly argued the defendants presented no evidence the girlfriend, Misty Ernst, had a mental illness and that the prospective jurors were properly removed because of the strong possibility of bias.

Murphy scoffed at the defense’s argument and told the Journal "they (Callihams) are cold-blooded murderers and they should stay in prison where they belong."

Damning testimony from Ernst, Jordan’s girlfriend of two years, sealed the fate of the two when she testified against them as part of a plea agreement for her part in the crime.

Ernst, 23 at the time, recounted at the trial that she had driven the Callihams and Eaton from Dove Creek to the Ucolo Road just inside the Utah state line on April 3, 1999 knowing the defendants planned to do "something" to the victim because he was suspected of stealing $300 worth of drugs from Jordan’s stash.

Ernst and the three youths had been on their way to buy some drugs in Monticello that night when Eaton asked her to stop so they could smoke a joint outside the car.

The Callihams then lured Eaton into a small stand of cedar trees about 60 feet from the road, she told the jury, while she stayed with the car. After she heard numerous shots, they returned without Eaton, and both made remarks indicating they’d killed him.

Jordan told her he’d "finished him off in the head," she said, while Terril commented that he was worried he would have to "kick him over" after Eaton failed to collapse upon being shot several times.

Dolores County Sheriff Jerry Martin testified that Ernst had provided police with details of the shooting not yet known to the public when she was interviewed in the weeks following the murder, including its specific location, a close estimate of the number of shots fired and the fact that Eaton had been shot once in the head.

Ernst, who had also been charged with criminal homicide for her role in the murder, provided county attorney Craig Halls with key evidence in obtaining the convictions after she pleaded guilty to a lesser charge and agreed to testify against the defendants last summer.

Ernst initially lied to protect her boyfriend during interviews with police. She eventually had pleaded guilty to obstructing justice in return for a guarantee of probation that could include a short jail term but no prison time.