A trio Boy Scout leaders in Utah claim they were merely performing a "civic service" when they decided to destroy a unique rock formation that had been overlooking Goblin Valley State Park for the past 20 million years.

"Some little kid was about ready to walk down here and die and Glenn saved his life by getting the boulder out of the way," one of the men can be heard saying in footage of the incident. "So it’s all about saving lives here at Goblin Valley."

Local Parks officials have a different take on the matter.

"This is highly, highly inappropriate," Utah State Parks spokesman Eugene Swalberg told the Salt Lake Tribune. "This is not what you do at state parks. It’s disturbing and upsetting."

Swalberg said the three men — since identified as Glenn Taylor, Dylan Taylor, and Dave Hall — will be held accountable for their actions.

Though no formal charges have been filed yet, Hall did not initially seem too concerned about the prospect of being in trouble with the law.

In response to a person who suggested he remove the video from his Facebook page to avoid incriminating himself Hall wrote, "I’ll take my chances with the cops rather then my conscience after hearing a family was crushed to death by a rock I was prompted to move."

He may have been referencing the recent Colorado rock slide that claimed the lives of five family members.

Glenn Taylor walked back some of the braggadocio yesterday, saying the he was "glad" they did it, but, at the same time, "wish we wouldn’t have done it."

Hall concurred with him, but insisted that the park was particularly crowded and they were legitimately concerned that a child might get hurt.

Swalberg also stands by the department's position on the goblin's destruction.

"This is not behavior that is appreciated or should exist in state parks," he told KSL. "This has been formed for literally millions of years, and it's supposed to last for a long time. It doesn't need individuals doing the work of Mother Nature."

If convicted of a crime, all three men would face immediate expulsion from the Scouts.

"If you’re a felon, you can’t be a scouter and that would break my heart, but I did the crime," Taylor told Fox 13 News.

[video via SLTrib]