Christopher Hargrave

Case record: Christopher Hargrave

Background

Christopher Hargrave worked at Jack in the Box from April to May of 2002 and had been fired from his job at Jack in the Box a few days prior to the crimes. He wore his uniform to the restaurant and gained admittance by stating he was called into work. Hargrave lived in a trailer on the Driver’s property and was asked to leave when he was fired.

Hargrave and accomplice Steven Boggs Jr. formed a white supremacist organization called the Imperial Royal Guard. Prosecutors introduced evidence that Hargrave and Boggs had founded a white supremacist militia group. Hargrave met and began dating Gayle Driver, the daughter of the owners of a pawnshop.

The offence

On May 19, 2002, Hargrave and Boggs went to rob the Jack-In-The-Box restaurant. Hargrave dressed in his work uniform and gained entrance to the restaurant under the guise that he had been called back to work. Inside, Hargrave distracted two employees while Boggs went through the back door. Hargrave and Boggs then took the three employees into the cooler and shot them several times in the back.

After stealing money from the registers and from each victim, Hargrave and Boggs left the store and went to a nearby bank to withdraw money using one of the victim’s stolen credit cards.

The three victims were minorities. Hargrave admitted to robbery but said Boggs committed the murders.

Victims

Alvarado, Brown, and Jimenez were working at the Jack in the Box on Main and Lindsay in Mesa, Arizona. The employees locked the doors after ten o’clock so that only the drive through window was open.

Between 11:15 and 11:30, all three employees were shot inside the Jack in the Box freezer. Brown died in the freezer almost immediately. Alvarado and Jimenez escaped from the freezer; Jimenez dialed 911 shortly before dying, while Alvarado lived long enough to make her way to the store’s back door. Between 11:30 and 11:45 p.m., Luis Vargas pulled up to the Jack in the Box drive through window and heard Alvarado moaning. When Vargas approached her, she spoke with him briefly.

Police Officer Beutal arrived at the Jack in the Box and communicated with Alvarado, who stated that she was injured and “made reference to two” people still in the store. From outside the store Beutal could see Jimenez lying on the ground. Upon entering the store, the police found Jimenez and Brown deceased.

Investigation

The night and morning following the murders, police officers documented the crime scene. The police found shell casings, as well as bullet projectiles and fragments inside the freezer, leading to the conclusion that all three victims were shot in the freezer.

Cash registers appeared as though someone had pried them open; less than $300 was taken from the store, with no money missing from the safe.

Two days after the murder, Boggs traded the murder weapon for another gun at the Driver’s pawn shop. The Drivers contacted the police, and Boggs was subsequently arrested when police confirmed the gun was the murder weapon from the restaurant.

Steve Boggs’ friend and former co-defendant, Christopher Hargrave, worked at Jack in the Box from April to May of 2002. Hargrave was fired after Jimenez, an assistant manager in training, reported Hargrave for twice having a short register.

On May 21, 2002, Boggs pawned a Taurus handgun at a shop owned by the Drivers. Mr. Driver cleaned the gun and placed it in his safe, finding the transaction suspicious. Mrs. Driver later called the police and informed the sheriff of the Taurus that Boggs pawned a few days earlier.

On June 3, 2002, Boggs called the pawn shop and unsuccessfully requested to buy back the Taurus, which the police later retrieved from the Drivers.

Mesa Police took Boggs to the station on June 5, 2002 and interviewed him, leading to the apprehension of Christopher Hargrave.

During the June 5 interview, Detective Vogel interrogated Boggs about the Jack in the Box murders for approximately three hours. Boggs waived his Miranda rights and agreed to voluntarily answer questions. Through the course of the interview, Boggs told several versions of what happened on the day of, and the days following, the murders.

The next day, two detectives took Boggs to secure physical evidence and transport him to his initial appearance. Boggs asked both detectives how to go about changing the story he told Vogel the previous day. At the initial appearance Boggs was appointed counsel. Afterwards, Boggs again asked one of the detectives to whom he needed to speak to change his story. The detectives arranged to bring Boggs to the interrogation room for further questioning.

During the June 6 interview, Boggs provided Detective Vogel with several varying explanations of how the murders occurred. At one point in the interview, after Vogel asked about Boggs’ son, Boggs told Vogel three times to leave him alone. Vogel did not leave the interrogation room, but asked Boggs if he wanted Vogel to leave for a few minutes. In response, Boggs began talking about how they were going to kill an innocent man and mentioned suicide.

Arrest

Mesa Police apprehended Christopher Hargrave after interviewing Steven Boggs Jr. on June 5, 2002.

Trial

Proceedings

Presiding Judge: Hon. Roland Steinle III

Prosecutor: Vince Imbordino

Defense Counsel: Gerald Gavin, Jason Leonard & Rena Glitsos

Start of Trial: January 17, 2006

Verdict: February 9, 2006

Sentencing: February 21, 2006

Aggravating Circumstances:

• Pecuniary gain
• Multiple homicides
• Especially heinous, cruel or depraved

Sentencing

Christopher Hargrave was sentenced to death on February 21, 2006.

Appeals

Direct Appeal pending before the Arizona Supreme Court.

Outcome

Steven Boggs Jr. received the death penalty for the murders in 2005.

Other details

INMATE 142231 HARGRAVE CHRISTOPHER.