SALT LAKE CITY (KUTV) — Years after surviving an ambush and shootout with the suspect in an attempted murder, Sgt. Jared Jensen with the Kaysville Police Department and member of the US Marshals Violent Fugitive Apprehension Strike Team has been diagnosed with stage 4 brain cancer.
Motivated by his experience cheating death in 12 years earlier, Jensen has fought for change to Utah’s Adult Probation and Parole and the Board of Pardons and Parole. He said he intents to fight for his life once more.
‘I’ve cheated death once before, why not again?’
Jensen was an officer with the Sunset Police Department in Dec. 2012 when he came across then 31-year-old Zane Openshaw.
Openshaw later told police he had an argument with his live-in girlfriend when he took his gun and left their home. He was walking down the street when he saw Jensen approach in his squad car.
“He said as he approached, he pulled his gun out, pointed it at the officer and fired until the gun was empty knowing that by doing so it would hurt the officer,” the probable cause affidavit said.
He was convicted of ambushing Jensen while he was sitting in his patrol car, firing eight rounds at him. Each shot missed.
Openshaw was ultimately released from prison after serving eight years for trying to kill Jensen, who objected in vain to a Board of Pardons and Parole hearing officer one year prior to his release.
The decision to release Openshaw was met with a firestorm of controversy, especially in the law enforcement community.
Jensen went public, urging lawmakers and Gov. Spencer Cox to reform Utah’s paroling system.
He helped legislative auditors identify flaws and problems as they prepared to audit the Board of Pardons and Parole, and assisted State Rep. Judy Weeks Rohner with House Bill 246. Jensen testified during a House committee hearing about that bill, which was enacted and signed into law by Gov. Cox, requiring the parole board to err on the side of public safety when making paroling decisions.
The husband, father, and son of the retired Logan Police chief was shocked, but resolute, after his diagnosis with brain cancer. Sgt. Jensen told 2News he intends to fight and win this battle – he cheated death once before, why not again.
‘Story far too common’
“Sgt. Jensen’s story is far too common in our nation these days,” said United States Marshal for Utah, Matthew Harris, in 2021. “A police officer doing his job and ambushed simply because he was wearing a police uniform. He turned a situation that nearly ended his life into a story of perseverance, and determination – joining the best fugitive hunters on earth to ensure the streets of Utah were safer from violent predators like his assailant. His children, family and neighbors are safer today because he continues to put on that uniform every day and is brave enough not to hide from adversity, but to confront it head on.”
Sgt. Jensen was allowed to call into Openshaw’s board rehearing in Dec. 2020, due to COVID-19 protocols.
“The offender acted with purpose and per the model penal code, demonstrated intent by showing the degree of certainty that his conduct would cause a certain result – the certain result being my death,” Jensen said. “I can tell you, I don’t go a day without thinking about it – but instead of dwelling on that, I’ve chosen to better myself and I proudly serve with the US Marshals Office, hunting down and putting violent fugitives in prison where they belong.”
In a letter to Governor Spencer Cox, on December 10, 2021, in advance of Openshaw being paroled, Jensen listed 2 News Investigates repeated reporting on issues with Adult Probation and Parole and the Board of Pardons and Parole.
“I just want to be one more piece of furthering the momentum of this issue,” he told 2News of our previous reporting. “I want to be someone who gets to sit down with our lawmakers – our legislators – and let’s identify and acknowledge this problem exists. Then we can step forward and say, ‘How can we fix it?'”
‘It’s disappointing to watch this occur’
Jensen wrote a letter to the governor that read, “Earlier this year, a Channel 2 News investigation uncovered the frightening reality when it comes to the number of parolees Utah Adult Probation and Parole has failed to properly supervise — some of whom are now fugitives putting the public in extreme danger.
For the past six months, on average, AP&P lost track of and could not account for 328 parolees statewide each month.
This statistic was confirmed in documents from the Utah Department of Corrections.
A separate article issued a few months ago, gave several examples of Utahns that were seriously victimized, some to the point of being killed, by parolees. The article states lawmakers, Chair Rep. Karianne Lisonbee, Vice Chair Rep. Jon Hawkins, and Rep. Brady Brammer want answers about these instances.
What this article failed to mention, is the staggering number of Utah Peace Officers killed by convicted felons and/or individuals out on parole, such as Officer Joseph Shinners, Officer Doug Barney, and numerous others.
How many Utahns, including Utah police officers, is the state going to allow to be killed before the leaders of the state view this trend as a problem and actively seek solutions?”
“From the moment I narrowly escaped those eight bullets fired directly at me, I became a different person,” he wrote. “I have had to take painful and humble steps in seeking out professional treatment. I have been diagnosed with an acute stress disorder with significant post-traumatic stress injuries.”
In 2023, as Rep. Weeks Rohner’s bill was being discussed during the House committee hearing Sgt. Jensen testified in support of House Bill 246, telling lawmakers about his experience getting shot at multiple times in 2012 while working for the Sunset Police Department.
Logan Police Chief Gary Jensen, Jensen’s father, also spoke at the committee hearing.
“It is disappointing, I’ll be honest with you, to watch this occur,” he said. “To have the justice system do what the justice system does – incarcerating this young man and just a short number of years later, to be remanded back out onto the streets to potentially offend again.”
Brain Cancer Diagnosis
On August 5, 2024, Sgt. Jensen went to his primary care physician because he was suffering migraine headaches he described as not lasting very long.
His doctor told him to get an MRI to rule anything out.
Jensen said there there were clinic and insurance issues standing in the way, and he would not be able to get in for the MRI until the end of the month.
The headaches got worse and became more frequent. Four days later, Jensen had the MRI.
He was on his way home, but didn’t make it far – he got a call telling him to go directly to the emergency room after a the MRI revealed a mass in his brain. Jensen was admitted to the hospital with multiple tumors and lesions.
Doctors at the University of Utah diagnosed him with Stage 4 brain cancer – glioblastoma.
On August 14, Jensen underwent his first surgery to remove the mass/tumors in the left frontal lobe of his brain.
However, after the surgery, there was a midline shift of his brain from 7mm to 10mm, and he started to decline. Surgeons determined there was swelling and pressure with high levels of C02 in his brain.
The following day, he underwent craniotomy surgery to remove part of his skull in an attempt to cause the brain to shift back into place and relieve swelling.
Show of Support from US Marshals, Kaysville PD
The 2012 attempt on his life led Jensen to VFAST in 2016. He is currently deputized and assigned to the U.S. Marshals Fugitive Task Force, where local law enforcement officers work with the U.S. Marshals to apprehend dangerous offenders.
On September 5, the day before Jensen would be released from rehab, the VFAST Team visited him at the Craig Nielsen Rehabilitation Center at the University of Utah Medical Center.
Members of VFAST and officers with the Kaysville Police Department joined Jensen’s family. He wore a helmet because a piece of his skull had to be removed during the Craniotomy surgery. He was in a coma for a week after the surgery.
“He has paid a great sacrifice in doing this for us,” said task force supervisor Mark Thomson.
“Jared has done so much to serve his community heroically and honorably,” he said, “We are so grateful for you.”
Sgt. Jensen spoke at length during a Zoom interview from his department. His assistant chief helped set up the shot and allowed him to use his office so we could hear from him about the road ahead.
“They are telling me ‘Don’t worry about anything, we’ve gotcha.’ I mean, they are taking care of me in a way that I didn’t know police departments could. So, yes, very, very supportive, very understanding. (I) couldn’t have asked for a better department right now,” Jensen said.
Jensen and his wife, Camille, have two children – a 7-year-old son and a 5-year-old daughter.
2News asked about the road ahead, knowing so many people care and would do anything they can for him. This is what the man who helped reform Utah’s parole system and kept our streets safer said:
“I guess the attitude I have going into this, is I’ve cheated death before so why not again. I don’t feel like I’ve done what I need to do yet, so I just can’t help but think this is gonna be ok. It’s gonna be hard, I’m sure. it’s gonna be filled with days that aren’t fun – but again, I can do that. I can do hard things; I can rise to the challenge like I said hopefully come out on top of this. He didn’t win that day, cancer is not gonna win this day and that’s all I can say about it. All I can do is plan on being here for my family, my kids, and a profession that I love and that’s how I got to look at it.”
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Publish date : 2024-09-18 08:16:00
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