Estimated read time: 3-4 minutes
- A Utah legislative committee advanced a jail crowding bill after removing a public mask ban in it.
- The revised bill prevents counties from releasing inmates arrested for serious crimes due to overcrowding.
- Concerns remain about the bill's impact on habitual offenders in the justice system.
SALT LAKE CITY — A bill that would have criminalized wearing a mask in public to conceal one's identity advanced through a legislative committee Monday, after the mask provision and similar controversial proposals were removed.
Utah House Majority Whip Karianne Lisonbee, R-Syracuse, alluded to the public backlash against the mask prohibition in her presentation of HB312 to the House Judiciary Committee, pointing out that the language had been removed.
"I tried to email back everybody that emailed me," she said.
Rep. Grant Miller, D-Salt Lake City, said he had received "more emails than I could ski on," primarily about the mask provision.
Another controversial piece of the bill that was ultimately removed would have allowed city attorneys to file certain charges even if a county or district attorney had declined to pursue charges. The language seemed directed toward Salt Lake County District Attorney Sim Gill, a Democrat, who has been frequently criticized by Republican lawmakers on Capitol Hill.
What emerged from the committee meeting was "a very pared down" bill, according to Lisonbee, that addresses which inmates counties can release when jails become overcrowded. Overcrowding has long been an issue at jails in Salt Lake County, and Lisonbee noted that the sheriff's office released nearly 4,000 inmates last year due to a lack of jail beds — nearly 1,000 of whom had been arrested for felonies.
HB312 would prevent any county from releasing people who were arrested or convicted of a number of crimes, including violent criminal offenses, felony drug offenses, possession of fentanyl, driving under the influence if the offense resulted in death or serious injury or if they were arrested for another crime within 30 days. The bill would also allow counties to contract with other counties to hold inmates if they are out of space.
"I think it's perfectly reasonable for the state to insert some language to say these are people that should see a judge before they're released after being arrested," Lisonbee said.
Salt Lake County has not expanded its jail capacity in decades, and a $507 million bond that would have included expanded space failed in November. Sheriff Rosie Rivera acknowledged the county has "been struggling" to find jail beds but said she would like to see more conversations around the issue as the bill moves forward.
Some remained opposed to the proposal, and several members of the public expressed concern that the classification of some people as "habitual offenders" would hurt people in the criminal justice system. Richard Morrow, with the Salt Lake Legal Defenders Association, said he's "concerned that if we create this scarlet letter with that definition, it will be problematic in the long run."
Lisonbee said the bill is the "first stab" at the issue and said lawmakers may need to adjust things in the future.
But, she said, "when cities and counties fail to provide resources and support for public safety, the impacts are not only felt by city and county residents, but statewide, and certainly statewide, we are seeing these impacts."
