Utah lawmakers boosted budget for new reviews of declined rape cases

Rep. Karianne Lisonbee, R-Clearfield, speaks during a discussion of HB 317 at the Capitol in Salt Lake City on Tuesday, Feb. 28, 2017. | Ravell Call, Deseret News

2019 law, first of its kind in nation, allows new look at old first-degree felony cases.

SALT LAKE CITY — When Utah lawmakers approved a first-of-its-kind program to reconsider uncharged reports of rape and other serious offenses last year, survivors of sexual assault and advocates working on their behalf cheered the move.

But the reviews proved slow going in the Utah Attorney General’s Office, where the cases piled on top of the existing workload for lawyers and investigators.

As months went by, some victims disappeared, while others moved thousands of miles away, hampering the investigations. In one case, a man suspected of targeting vulnerable and mentally ill women died of health issues just as the office was preparing to formally charge him.

Now, with an incoming $840,000 approved last week by the 2020 Legislature, the office is planning on speeding up analysis of reports previously declined by law enforcers at the county level.

“I think this new infusion will be very critical,” said Craig Barlow, the criminal deputy attorney general who oversees the program. “I think we’ve been responsible in reviewing the cases and doing further investigation, but they were also assigned to investigators who had full plates, so everything has just been a little bit slower.”

The new legislative allotment is nearly five times the $171,000 the office received last year, an initial chunk that proved too small to make planned hires and ultimately was rolled back into the office’s budget. It means the program will be able to bring on two investigators, at least one prosecutor, and cover part-time help from a paralegal, plus travel expenses to visit witnesses.

The 2019 law, HB281, granted the Utah Attorney General’s Office authority to take a fresh look at first-degree felony investigations and possibly file criminal charges. But it can only do so after a county attorney has passed on the case or waited more than six months to analyze it.

The law’s sponsor, Rep. Karianne Lisonbee, R-Clearfield, brought the measure with rape cases top of mind, saying those sorts of crimes can escape scrutiny in overworked police departments. The new appeal process would motivate law enforcers to ensure that a report is fully investigated, she said.

“I’m extremely pleased with the funding,” said Lisonbee, who sponsored this year’s budget request that was granted in full. “I believe it will provide a long-term solution to the dearth in investigations and prosecutions on possible felonies.”

Proponents, including several prosecutors, have said her law is a fallback measure in the rare cases when a well-founded case languishes. Critics, however, contend the initial investigations are typically thoughtful and the follow-up won’t help in cases that simply lack the evidence for a conviction.

Paul Cassell, a victim rights attorney representing four women whose cases previously were declined, said the beefed-up funding could help the office afford a lawyer with the expertise to evaluate the complicated cases.

His four clients — referred to in court documents as Jane Does — had originally petitioned Utah’s Supreme Court for a new look at their reports, but ultimately pursued the new path provided in the law.

“I think this is really good that the Legislature has stepped up to the plate to fulfill the promise they made last year,” Cassell said.

He noted investigators believe the perpetrator, who ultimately died, had victimized several women, not just one of his clients.

“These are going to be cases where if you can get someone off the street, there’s going to be significant public safety benefits, Cassell said.

Reviews for the three other women remain pending, alongside about 10 more, Barlow said. The office has declined to prosecute two.

To qualify, the conduct must fit a first-degree felony and undergo investigation by police, then make its way to a prosecutor.

Before the law passed, the attorney general’s office could previously intervene and review such cases, but only amid abuse of discretion on the part of a county attorney, meaning a clear error or unreasonable conclusion on the county attorney’s part.

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