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Family mourns man shot by nephew in Pleasant Grove

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Family mourns man shot by nephew in Pleasant Grove

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A family is in mourning this week after Jeffery Boyd Ackerman, 45, was shot and killed by his nephew in Pleasant Grove on Friday.

Jeff Wilson, Ackerman’s brother-in-law, said his family mourns, both for the loss of Ackerman and for his troubled nephew, Colton Louder. Wilson said the whole family has been affected by the tragedy.

“We need to grieve for both people,” Wilson said.

Louder, 25, is currently being held in the Utah County Jail on a $1 million cash bail on charges of murder and burglary, according to a probable cause statement. He was arrested Friday after a long pursuit through Pleasant Grove and American Fork.

Wilson said Louder was not in his normal state of mind when the shooting happened, and he may not know the full extent of his actions, even now. Wilson said Louder’s mother visited him Friday night, and he told her he did not know what he had done.

“Colton, when he does come to understand what happened, it’s going to be devastating for him,” Wilson said.

Louder and Ackerman had a good relationship before the shooting, Wilson said, and Louder would never have shot Ackerman if he knew what he was doing. Ackerman loved Louder and was trying to help him through some difficult circumstances, he said.

“Jeff was looking at moving in with Colton to help him,” Wilson said.

Wilson said Louder was constantly paranoid and always thought people were after him. His family always supported him, and Louder often went to his grandparents’ home — where Ackerman lived — in order to have a safe haven. He and Ackerman supported each other and would have given their lives for each other, Wilson said.

“When he was shot, it was shocking to both of them, I believe,” he said.

Wilson said that when the confrontation occurred Friday, Ackerman likely chased Louder because he wanted to help him. Louder, Wilson said, may have been scared and paranoid.

Lt. Michael Smith, of the Pleasant Grove police department, said officers received witness reports that Louder was in garages in Ackerman’s neighborhood before the shooting. He was confronted by one woman, who he told he wasn’t doing anything, he just needed money. Police believe Louder was later confronted by the victim in Ackerman’s garage, where Smith said family members heard Ackerman ask Louder what he was doing there and told him to leave. Smith said it is still unclear what the altercation was about, as Louder exercised his right to remain silent when he was arrested.

“We have limited information on that,” Smith said. “The suspect, we never got a statement from him.”

Smith said family members in the home then heard shots fired, and a chase ensued through yards and down the block, where a witness reported Louder turned around and fired several shots at Ackerman and fled. According to the probable cause statement, police and paramedics performed CPR on the scene, but Ackerman never had a pulse and was declared dead on arrival at the hospital.

Although initial reports stated Ackerman was shot in the hand while still in his garage, Smith said police now believe he was not shot until he and Louder reached the nearby field where Ackerman died.

Smith said police searched for Louder for more than an hour before he was apprehended in American Fork, near the police station. While on the run, Smith said Louder was seen by a witness in the parking lot of a medical clinic, where police confirmed he left his gun. According to the police affidavit, Louder told police he left his gun in the parking lot, and the unspent cartridges matched those at the scene of the shooting.

Smith said Louder ran from police when he was spotted, but he did not fight with officers. Smith said police believe he may have been trying to make it back to his car, which was found Sunday in American Fork.

Police received several tips and sightings of Louder while he was on the run, Smith said, which helped officers track him north and west from the shooting location. One citizen even helped to chase him down with an American Fork officer, he said.

“They were very helpful,” Smith said. “Without the public and their calls in, we might not have got him.”

Louder has some misdemeanor drug history in Utah County, but he has not had any major criminal history, Smith said. Drugs may have played a role in the shooting and police are looking further into the possibility, he said.

That’s something we are suspicious of and are looking into,” Smith said.

Wilson said he wishes people knew the real Colton Louder, the fun-loving nephew who hung out with Wilson’s son of the same age. Louder was a lot like Ackerman, Wilson said, and he would have gone out of his way to help anyone.

“I can’t talk bad about Colton, because I love the boy,” he said. “I know the real Colton.”

Wilson said his family is still struggling to deal with the tragedy for both men. In the end, he said the family should not be upset with each other over what happened, but support Louder as Ackerman would have.

“We’ve always been taught in our life, in these kinds of circumstances, to love the person, to forgive the person and to be there for them,” he said. “And that’s what Jeff would have wanted to do.”