Salt Lake County sees rise in severity of crimes

Crime is growing worse in Salt Lake County.

The severity of crimes, especially those committed by women, is rising, Salt Lake County District Attorney Lohra Miller said Tuesday. All three levels of felonies jumped in the past year, with increases in both men and women booked.

Accused female criminals were mostly booked into jail for theft, drugs and assault, according to Salt Lake County Jail statistics. In total, bookings for alleged third-degree and second-degree felonies are both up 12 percentage points, and bookings for alleged first-degree acts are up 3 percentage points for women in the past year.

Male offenses are just as bad, with alleged third-degree felony bookings up 11 percentage points, second-degree at 10 points and first degree at 3 points. Most men in the Salt Lake County Jail are also being held on theft, drugs or assault charges.

"It makes me nervous," Salt Lake County Councilman Jeff Allen said as he read the latest crime statistics. "We need to make sure we address this. It's the single most important thing we do as a county."

The increased crime rate overloads the criminal justice system, and without more resources, the county won't be able to tackle the problem, Miller said.

Although felony cases are being filed in record numbers, the number of prosecutors in the district attorney's office has remained relatively stagnant. Miller said her office was on the "brink of fracture" in May due to the number of cases being filed.

Miller plans to ask for more resources during the county's upcoming budget workshops.

Among her requests are several new attorneys and support staff; a screening unit at the West Jordan courthouse; a court services unit to prepare more witnesses for court; and a community prosecution coordinator

"It's not just throwing money at the problem," Miller said. "It's making sure our solution is well thought out."

The solution doesn't just include the district attorney's office. Reducing crime rates will require a complete overhaul of the county's criminal justice system, Miller said.

Everything has its piece: The courts need more judges, the jail needs more beds and prosecutors need more time to study their cases effectively, she said.

"Nobody is disagreeing that we need to approach the problem from multiple areas," Salt Lake County Sheriff Jim Winder said.

The County Council seems open to the idea of funding the overhaul, albeit in phases.

"This is not about money. I think everyone on the council is willing to spend whatever money it takes," Allen said. "If we're going to go out and spend several millions of dollars, what impact is that going to have? We want to make sure over the long term we make an impact reducing criminal activity, not just punishing criminals."

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E-mail: ldethman@desnews.com