SALT LAKE CITY — A 35-year-old Kaysville police officer received a visit from around 30 law enforcement agents Thursday after a surprise cancer diagnosis in August left his family and department reeling.
Jared Jensen was fishing with his father, former Logan Police Chief Gary Jensen, on the Weber River in early August when he was struck by violent headaches.
He got an MRI days later, as his headaches increased in frequency and intensity. On his way home from the scan on Aug. 9, Jensen got a call telling him to go directly to the emergency room because he had multiple tumors and lesions in his brain. The officer has not been home since.
Jensen has beat the odds before. In December 2012, only 4 months into his career as a police officer, he was ambushed in his car. A man pulled a handgun out of his waistband and emptied 8 rounds into Jensen’s patrol car. Bullets pierced the car door, whizzing by Jensen’s head and into the steering wheel, computer and passenger door. Every shot missed.
The gunman, Zane Openshaw, was convicted of attempted murder and served eight years in state prison. Jensen sent an open letter to Gov. Spencer Cox when Openshaw was released in 2021, saying, “From the moment I narrowly escaped those eight bullets fired directly at me, I became a different person.”
“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,” he said, arguing against releasing Openshaw so soon.
The incident also led Jensen to join the Violent Fugitive Apprehension Strike Team in 2016, where local law enforcement works with U.S. Marshals to take dangerous offenders into custody.
“He has paid a great sacrifice in doing this for us,” said Mark Thomson, the task force supervisor.
“Jared has done so much to serve his community,” he said, “We are so grateful for you.”
Members of the strike team and officers from the Kaysville police department joined Jensen’s family, packing out a conference room at the clinic. Jenson wore a helmet because a piece of his skull had to be removed to allow serious brain swelling to go down. His family said Jensen was in a coma for a week after the surgery.
“We weren’t sure how or if he was going to make it,” Jensen’s wife, Camille, said. When he did wake up the right side of his body was numb and his eyesight was “touch and go for a minute,” according to Jensen, and he was unable to speak.
“His progress has been amazing,” Jensen’s father said. But there’s a lot of fight ahead as Jensen gets radiation on his brain before surgeons replace the section of his skull.
Kaysville’s assistant chief, Seth Ellington, said Jensen “is a very, very important part of our department” and “probably one of our most dedicated officers.”
“It hits hard,” Ellington said.
Jensen, his wife and their two young children remain hopeful. “I never thought I’d be in this position, but I’ve done hard things and I’m going to do it again this time,” he said.
A GoFundMe has been started to help the family with medical expenses.
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