A 23-year-old man has been arrested for manslaughter after allegedly shooting and killing a friend during a game involving firearms, following a marijuana smoking session, according to arrest documents.
Ashton Jonathan Mann, of Kearns, Utah, was taken into custody in the early hours of Sunday, Feb. 2, on charges of second-degree felony manslaughter and a third-degree felony related to firearms.
Unified Police officers responded to a call at a Kearns home late Sunday night after receiving reports of a man shot in the chest. Upon arrival, officers found the victim unresponsive on the floor. Despite attempts to save him, the man later succumbed to his injuries at the hospital.
In a police interview after he was read his Miranda rights, Mann explained to detectives that he and his friend had been smoking marijuana earlier in the evening. Around 8 p.m., they began discussing guns in the kitchen. The conversation eventually moved to a detached garage where the two men continued handling two separate handguns.
During their exchange, the victim allegedly boasted that he could “dodge a bullet.” According to Mann’s statement to police, the two unloaded the guns before Mann pointed one at the victim, pulling the trigger multiple times. The victim, attempting to prove his claim, allegedly tried to “jump out of the way” each time the gun was aimed.
Mann said they repeated this act approximately six times before the final trigger pull resulted in a gunshot that struck the victim in the chest.
In the aftermath, Mann said the victim asked him to call 911, and he attempted to render aid while waiting for emergency responders to arrive.
Following the incident, police executed a search warrant at the residence, recovering two handguns, ammunition, and drug paraphernalia consistent with marijuana use.
Mann is currently being held on the charges mentioned above, pending further investigation.
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