Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr.'s pick to head the Commission on Criminal and Juvenile Justice quietly withdrew his nomination last month after questions were raised about whether he was truthful with lawmakers.

Jesse Gallegos, a member of the Utah Board of Pardons and Parole, said Wednesday that he mistakenly told members of a Senate confirmation committee that he had never taken the Utah State Bar Examination, required to practice law.

"It's something I forgot doing," Gallegos said. "I sat for the bar exam in 1993, and I failed."

The day after his June 20 hearing, he recalled having taken the test. "It's something that people find hard to believe, but that's what happened."

Gallegos, who graduated from the University of Utah law school in 1991, said he has never claimed to be a member of the state bar. Biographical information provided by the governor's office when his appointment was announced in May states only that he has a law degree.

Membership in the bar is not required to fill the executive director's spot at the commission, but the question was still raised during Gallegos' confirmation hearing last month. The full Senate has to approve the governor's appointment to the post.

According to the minutes of the Senate Judiciary, Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice Confirmation Committee, Gallegos was asked "about providing timely and accurate information . . . on his career decision not to become a member of the state bar."

The Senate committee ended up voting to postpone a decision on Gallegos until July. But Gallegos met with the governor's office the following day and decided to withdraw his name from further consideration for the post.

"There were inconsistencies in his comments before the Senate nomination committee which led to some concerns and, as such, he chose to voluntarily withdraw his nomination," said the governor's spokesman, Mike Mower.

Mower said Gallegos is expected to continue as a member of the Board of Pardons until his term expires in February 2008. "We anticipate he will continue to serve out the remainder of his term," Mower said.

Gallegos had been named to replace Michele Christiansen as head of the commission. Christiansen has taken over as Huntsman's general counsel, replacing Mike Lee, who left the administration to serve as a clerk on the U.S. Supreme Court.

Tom Patterson, who had been sentencing-commission director, is serving as acting director of the commission while the governor's office searches for a permanent replacement for Christiansen.

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