BRIGHAM CITY, UT — Box Elder County Sheriff Kevin Potter is on voluntary administrative leave after a Tuesday crash in Weber County that critically injured a 22-year-old motorcyclist, according to county and police officials.
Ogden police said Potter was the driver of the vehicle involved in the collision at Canyon Road and Valley Drive, near the mouth of Ogden Canyon. The crash remains under investigation by Ogden police and the Weber Metro CRASH team.
County officials said Potter stayed at the scene and cooperated with investigators. Police said the injured rider was wearing a helmet and was taken to a local hospital in critical condition.
Ogden police say the crash happened near Ogden Canyon around midafternoon
Ogden police said the crash occurred around 2:45 p.m. Tuesday at the intersection of Canyon Road and Valley Drive. Preliminary information shows the motorcycle was traveling eastbound on Canyon Road when it collided with a vehicle turning from Valley Drive onto westbound Canyon Road.
The rider, a 22-year-old woman, was hospitalized after the wreck. Police said she remained in critical condition after the crash, which involved a motorcycle and a vehicle.
As of Friday, the scene still showed signs of the collision, with scuffed asphalt and green paint markings visible in the roadway. Officials said the case is being handled like any other serious-injury crash and that detailed scene reconstruction and evidence review will take time.
County leaders place Potter on leave during the investigation
Box Elder County said Potter is stepping away from his duties while the incident is reviewed. In a statement Friday, county officials said the move follows standard procedure and is being done voluntarily while investigators continue their work.
The county also said its thoughts are with everyone affected by the crash. Ogden police said Friday that the investigation remains active and that serious-injury cases often require interviews with witnesses, analysis of physical evidence and vehicle data, and scene reconstruction before they are finished.
Police did not give a timetable for when the inquiry might be completed. They said the goal is the same as in any major crash investigation: to piece together what happened and how the vehicles came together at the intersection.
A separate censure letter from last year resurfaced after the crash
Along with the crash response, KSL on Friday obtained a formal censure letter Potter received from Box Elder County commissioners last May tied to a separate January encounter with two private citizens.
Commissioners said an investigation found no evidence supporting criminal conduct or driving under the influence, but it did substantiate violations of county personnel policies and sheriff’s office standards of conduct. The letter says Potter violated three policies in connection with the Jan. 19 incident.
County officials also wrote that Potter’s conduct was especially serious because of his position as sheriff. They told him his behavior fell short of the standards expected of the county’s top law enforcement officer.
Commissioners cited alcohol in a county vehicle and a confrontational exchange
The censure letter says Potter had an alcohol-related policy violation after county investigators determined he kept a cooler containing beer in a county-owned vehicle. Commissioners also said he was in possession of alcohol in the vehicle and that transporting it regularly breached county fleet policy.
In the January incident, the letter says Potter had a heated exchange with a private citizen while off duty but still operating a department vehicle. Commissioners wrote that he activated emergency lights during the confrontation, a move they described as conduct unbecoming of the sheriff.
The letter also directed Potter to stop routinely keeping or storing alcohol in any county vehicle. Commissioners said the behavior reflected poorly on the department and undermined public trust.
Potter's political future was already unsettled before the crash
The crash comes as Potter’s name is already familiar in county politics, though the sheriff’s race itself is not the focus of this case. He lost earlier this year in his bid for reelection in the Republican primary, according to the county’s account of the election cycle.
The county and police statements make clear that Tuesday’s collision is being treated separately from the earlier censure. For now, the priority remains the woman hospitalized in critical condition and the investigation into how the crash unfolded at a busy Weber County intersection.
Officials said the driver involved in the crash remained cooperative, and Friday’s police statement said the case is proceeding under the same standards used in other serious injury collisions. Investigators have not said what, if anything, may have contributed to the crash beyond the initial account of the turning vehicle and the eastbound motorcycle.
What officials have said so far about the ongoing case
At this point, the confirmed details are limited. Police have identified the location, the time and the people involved, but the investigation remains open and no final findings have been released.
Ogden police said the rider was helmeted, was transported to a local hospital and was critically injured. Box Elder County said Potter remained at the scene and cooperated. Investigators from Ogden police and the Weber Metro CRASH team are still reviewing evidence.
Officials said these kinds of cases can take weeks or longer, especially when reconstruction and data analysis are needed. For now, the crash has placed the county sheriff on leave and left a young motorcyclist fighting for recovery.
