Having pled guilty to the murder of his parents, a hormone blocker-taking Utah man with numerous diagnoses of mental illness added a religious angle to a sentencing statement.
(Video Credit: ABC4 Utah)
In June 2024, Mia Bailey, born Collin Bailey, had been arrested after a lengthy manhunt following the murder of his 70-year-old father Joseph and 69-year-old mother Gail, along with attempts to shoot his brother and his brother’s wife. Friday, Bailey’s attorney read a statement citing his client’s Muslim faith that would make it “appropriate” that he take his own life rather than face the pair of sentences of 25 years to life.
While his client had asked the court to skip the sentencing for fear of a mental breakdown, a request The Salt Lake Tribune reported was denied, attorney Ryan Stout had read a statement about a “perfect storm” leading up to the murders related to diagnoses of ADHD, anxiety, depression, OCD, possible bipolar disorder with psychosis, psychosis and schizophrenia and a hospital stay days before the tragedy.
“Because of my religious beliefs as a Muslim, it would be appropriate to take my life for atonement for what I did,” the statement went on.
Given their own chance to speak at the sentencing, which had included up to an additional five years for aggravated assault for shooting at the brother and sister-in-law, both brothers spoke to their sibling’s mental illness.
Dustin Bailey expressed that his brother had been released “too quickly” from the hospital mere days before killing his parents. In addition to spending three days admitted for schizophrenia, the brother detailed that no psychiatric exams had been conducted before Bailey had been prescribed hormone blockers via telehealth.
He also argued, “There is nothing wrong with being transgender. This is about medical negligence.”
As had been reported, court documents had indicated Bailey told officers of his intent to kill his parents at the time of his arrest, “I would do it again. I hate them.”
‘I would do it again’: Transgender murder suspect appears to have no remorse after slaying of parents https://t.co/41hLnys6At via @BIZPACReview
— BPR based (@DumpstrFireNews) June 22, 2024
Speaking to the brutality of the murders, District Judge Keith C. Barnes had recounted the sequence of events that had included preparations, violation of a protective order, the initial shooting of the parents, attempt to shoot other family members in the house and then how Bailey returned to his father and “… shot him one more time in the head to make sure he was dead,” before doing the same to his mother when he’d heard her making noises.
In his own statement to the court, lead prosecutor Washington County Attorney Jerry Jaeger had said, “This has been a difficult case for our office, for me personally as the prosecutor, and especially for the Bailey family. Today wasn’t about Mia. It was about Joseph and Gail, two individuals whose lives were cut tragically short. We are relieved and grateful for the judge’s ruling that Mia serve consecutive prison sentences, one sentence for each victim. We also hope there can be healing for all involved.”
Bailey also faces two third-degree felony counts of assault by a prisoner after he allegedly attacked staff members at Purgatory Correctional Facility in Oct. 2024 when he was told to exit his cell. He was said to have hit one in the face and kicked the other in the knee.
Native of Brooklyn, NY, Kevin Haggerty is a graduate of Hunter College where he studied Cultural Anthropology and Geography. An avid reader and truth seeker, he currently resides in Texas with his wife and their dog and, when he isn't researching current events and their impacts, you'll find him spending time with friends and family or working on his next novel.
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