The case of former Wasatch County Sheriff’s Office employee Mitchell McKee is scheduled for trial by jury this February. Wednesday, Fourth District Judge Shawn Howell denied defense attorneys’ motions to dismiss all 10 charges against McKee.  McKee is facing two first-degree felony counts o f human trafficking of a child, two first-degree felony counts of forcible sodomy, one first-degree felony count of enticing a minor, two second-degree felony counts of forcible sexual abuse, two second-degree felony counts of sexual exploitation of a minor and one third-degree felony count of dealing in materials harmful to a minor.  Attorneys Bradley Henderson and Andrew McAdams made a motion to dismiss all charges on Aug. 20. The defense argued that attorneys by the state of Utah failed to provide all of the evidence requested for the case.  Henderson said the evidence revolves around the alleged victim in the case. The 16-year-old teen in question gave information about engaging in sexual activity with an older man for vape pens and alcohol during a traffic stop in 2023.  “It’s not hard. It’s a 16-year-old boy, young man, but at the time this stop happens, it’s 15, and the police officer looks at him and says, ‘You look them up, you’ll find sex offenses,’” Henderson said. “We’re looking for the sex offenses. We’re looking for an interaction with people where he lied about his age in the past, because that’s what he did with the man he was stopped with.” The alleged victim told police that he met up with an older male multiple times and that they would drive to either the Wasatch County rodeo grounds parking lot or near the Soldier Hollow Golf Course to engage in sex acts.  On March 20, 2023, McKee was identified by police as a suspect in an investigation uncovering felony sex crimes.  Internet Crimes Against Children agents executed a search warrant on McKee’s home in March, when they uncovered “age-difficult” photos of nude males on electronic devices. McKee is a former sex therapist working in Provo who was also employed for administrative services in the Wasatch County Sheriff’s Office. He pleaded not guilty to all charges on May 28.  The case was transferred to the Fourth District Court in Provo due to McKee’s position in Wasatch County.  Wednesday, Howell also denied defense attorneys’ motions to quash first-degree felony charges including two counts of human trafficking of a child and one count of enticing a minor. Henderson argued that there was never a firm quid pro quo between the alleged victim and McKee.  “Essentially, we have the alleged victim, who says ‘I asked him if he would bring alcohol or drugs over the phone,’ and he said, ‘We’ll see,’” Henderson said.  Henderson argued that “We’ll see” does not constitute firm action or agreement.  “I appreciate the equivocal nature of the ‘We’ll see,’ and, frankly, if you ask my kids they would say that actually means no,” Howell said. “But I think those are factual arguments to be made to a jury, and a very reasonable inference is made to that.”  Defense attorneys for McKee and attorneys for the state of Utah agreed to a status hearing in two weeks to check what evidence can be provided by the state. That may lead to continuance of the trial. The next major step in the case is a trial by jury.  McKee’s four-day jury trial is scheduled for Feb. 9, 11, 12 and 13, 2026.  The post Trial by jury scheduled for former Wasatch County Sheriff’s Office employee facing felony sex charges appeared first on Park Record. ...read more read less