Salt Lake County murders to jump 50%, Miller says

The slaying of a man sitting in a car in his driveway earlier this week is just a sign of things to come, warns Salt Lake County District Attorney Lohra Miller.

Violent crime is on the rise, Miller insists, despite her critics claiming the rookie Republican district attorney cried wolf and used faulty data to persuade Salt Lake County leaders to budget an additional $1.3 million for new prosecutors.

In the first six months of this year alone, violent crime is up 10.8 percent statewide, according to the Department of Public Safety's Crime in Utah biannual report.

And in Salt Lake County, Miller projects a 50 percent increase in murders in 2007.

"These are some of the largest increases we've ever seen in crime reporting, and they're consistent with what law enforcement and what my office has been saying, that we're seeing an increase not only in crime but severity of crime," Miller said.

Democratic county leaders aren't convinced crime is rising quite as fast as Miller claims, but they admit they don't really know.

Miller met with Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon this week to show him her latest crime statistics, in an effort to keep him from vetoing portions of her budget.

Corroon said, "I'm not sure what the true picture is" when it comes to the crime rate in Salt Lake County.

"I wouldn't say she's crying wolf," Corroon said. "I'm saying she's seeing a snapshot in time. The question is, is this really a crime increase that necessitates adding more people to her staff, or is it something that they just need to work through short term?"

As of July 1, Salt Lake County reported 18 murders. That's 13 more than the same time period a year before. Five of the 2007 murders happened in one night in February when a gunman went on a rampage at Trolley Square.

Councilman Jeff Allen said he knows crime is up because calls to the domestic violence hotline that required police intervention are up 65 percent.

"There is enough evidence — be it statistical or anecdotal — to suggest there is definitely an increase in the crime rate," Allen said.

With the rising crime rate, Miller said her staff is overworked.

Felony prosecutors at the Salt Lake County District Attorney's Office are assigned about 215 cases per year, while the national average is about 150 felony cases per prosecutor, according to the American Bar Association.

The district attorney has lost 27 attorneys since she took office, through retirement, with firings or attorneys quitting to take higher-paying jobs. Corroon said Miller can't ask for more attorneys until she fills the positions of those who have left.