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The Trial

Friday, February 5, 1999 at approximately 1645hours Pacific Time, Kootenai County District Court Judge James Judd sent the jury into deliberations in the capital murder case of Scott Yager, accused in the murder of Idaho State Trooper Linda Huff. There were three charges against Yager...Murder, Murder in the First Degree, and Felony Usage of a Deadly Weapon.

The trial started on Monday, February 1, 1999, and had lasted only five days. Witnesses were brought forward, and testified to the normal ballistic and technical facts, but a few were brought forward to testify of Yager's frame of mind and anger towards law enforcement. In the procedings, it was learned that Yager had told numerous people in the weeks before the murder that he wanted to kill a cop, believing that cops had ruined his life for a D.U.I. he had received a couple of years earlier.

His driver's license suspended, he rode his bicycle from his home in Rathdrum, ID, to the city limits of Coeur d' Alene, ID, and stopped at the Idaho State Police District One Headquarters on Prairie Avenue. In his pocket, or in a fanny pack of sorts, he had with him a pistol with 15 rounds in the magazine and one in the chamber, and at least two other magazines.

Though no one knows how the struggle started, here are the facts as can best be determined....Trooper Linda Huff exited the rear door of the building to the parking lot and her car that was parked at the curb. Then the dispatchers on duty heard these words on their radio, "Parking lot, gun, gun, ....You shot me bitch". One dispatcher ran to the back door, opened it, and looked out to see Yager standing over Trooper Huff's prone body with a gun in his hand. The dispatcher then ran back inside the building, and another dispatcher requested assistance over the radio for an officer down. Police officers for the other agencies in the area have ISP's frequency on their radios, and heard the cry for help and responded, a Kootenai County Sheriff's Department Sergeant arriving within 45 seconds.

It was found that Troopers Huff was dead on arrival after being struck more than 10 times with the suspect's bullets, the last one to her temple fired at contact range. Trooper Huff's cruiser keys were still clutched in her hand. Her service weapon had been fired nine times, striking the suspect twice in the neck and shoulder.

Yager was found walking in the area adjacent to the killing and in possession of the murder weapon; he was then taken into custody without incident...other than a broken arm sustained in the course of arrest. Strands of Trooper Huff's blonde hair were stuck in the chamber of Yager's gun. Also found on Yager at the time of his arrest were more that one other full magazine of ammunition, in addition to the one found at the crime scene, and one still in the weapon.

The defense attorney, Kootenai County Public Defender John Adams' sole defense was that "NO ONE WILL GET UP ON THE WITNESS STAND AND HONESTLY TELL YOU WHICH ONE PULLED THE TRIGGER FIRST." Well, one person is dead, and the other apparently wasn't going to be put on the stand. His line of defense was that Yager fires at this officer in fear for his life. He conceded that his client was involved in the altercation, but that he didn't plan it.

OK, now for some additions to the facts....for starters, how many officers do you know will get into a fight, let alone a gun battle, with their keys still in their hands, not to mention firing their weapon with ANYTHING else in their hands?? Now, you're Joe Citizen, dwelling on the past, telling people your life sucks because you got a DUI a couple of years ago and life has gone downhill since, and you're going to kill a cop to satisfy yourself....and it's 11pm, and suddenly you feel the urge to ride your bicycle to a town that's not even close to where you live, carrying more than enough ammo for self defense should some hick whacko decide to stop and rob you along the highway, then stop at the nearest cop-shop, and you find yourself lying in wait for the first officer who comes out the door...and suddenly you're standing over her body now, she's pretty much wounded to the point of not moving anymore, but no, you must RELOAD your weapon, and fire one more shot, just one more, into her temple, and knowing someone came out of the building and saw you, you just walk away. No, not planned, not planned at all...gimme a break.

Yager sat through the procedings either stone-faced or smirking at this or that...

Regardless, the jury was sent off to make their decision, and came back with a verdict within three and a half hours....

Charge 1 - MURDER....GUILTY

Charge 2 - 1st Degree Murder....GUILTY

Charge 3 - Felony Use of a Deadly Weapon....GUILTY

The pre-sentencing investigation was scheduled, and at the time of this writing, the sentencing date is towards the end of May....one can only hope that Judge Judd will do the right thing and sentence Yager to lethal injection.

Though this update is late in getting posted, at this time, Trooper Chad Huff, Linda's husband, is moving on with his life and is getting remarried soon.

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