Salt Lake City Criminal Law Blog

An Arkansas mother may be regretting her actions after she was convicted of harassing her son by breaking into his Facebook account and posting messages to his friends. The mother took advantage of an opportunity to monitor her son's Facebook activities when he left his account open on a laptop. She posted several messages through her son's account that disparaged him because of a recent altercation. In court, she claimed she thought she was posting through her own account. The judge didn't believe her. She now faces 30 days in jail if she violates probation and mandatory anger management and parenting courses.

At sentencing, the judge cautioned the mother about consequences of bringing private family disputes into the public sphere: "What used to be said between two people or in a parking lot, now you hit a button and hundreds, maybe millions, of people can hear what you do. It makes it maybe even more important for a person to think before they act...". Many others could heed that lesson.

State computer privacy laws have been re-booted by Utah legislators. Effective November 1, 2010, Utah laws will penalize computer hackers -- those who gain access to another's computer or networking account and those who cause damage to another's computer or networking account -- with at least a class B misdemeanor charge and up to a third-degree felony charge, depending on the amount of damage that resulted from the intrusion. Current law contains similar penalties, but has different damages amounts to trigger the increased charges.

As many consumers are learning, with new media, comes new responsibilities and privacy issues. Intrusions into a family member or loved one's e-mail, Facebook or computer accounts, even if inadvertent, may later be viewed harshly by prosecutors or judges. Contact a knowledgeable criminal defense attorney if you are being investigated for or have been charged with violation of computer privacy laws in Utah.

Law enforcement authorities, judges and people who have gone through the system and come out better citizens hail the successes of Utah's drug courts. Unfortunately, widespread acclaim hasn't been enough to prevent the closure of several of Utah's municipal drug courts bogged down by new reporting requirements and handcuffed by a law preventing plea agreements for DUI offenders.

KSL TV reports that the Holladay drug court has closed and the Clearfield drug court is preparing to close.

How Do Drug Courts Work?

Utah began using drug courts in the mid-1990s, offering low-level offenders an alternative to traditional punishments such as prison and hefty fines.

Drug court participants attend regular, required treatment sessions and must make court appearances and submit to random drug tests. The random tests are paid for by the offender, who must also attend therapy, pay fines and do community service.

Drug courts often recommend that participants develop skills that will help them cope successfully in the long-term with mainstream society: urging participants to increase their education levels and develop relationships with community mentors.

Evidence that Drug Courts are Effective

The U.S. Justice Department estimates that 45 percent of drug offenders who don't go through drug court wind up reoffending. Of the drug crime offenders who go to prison, 60 percent reoffend after their release from incarceration.

By contrast, a University of Utah study showed that Utah drug court graduates have a recidivism rate of only seven percent.

Drug courts are cost-effective, too. According to the Utah State Court system, drug court treatment costs $7 a day. Again, the difference between drug court and traditional punishment is stark: it costs $70 per day to incarcerate someone in a state prison.

Rock and a Hard Place

Like most states, Utah faces budget problems forcing tough choices on policymakers. The Utah state prison system is facing $20 million in budget cuts that will require emergency releases of prisoners before the end of 2010, corrections executive director Tom Patterson told the state legislature.

There are currently more than 6,600 inmates in the state prison system; the state prison system is down to its last few remaining spaces for new prisoners.

Once the system reaches its limit, it will have to release a prisoner for every new inmate added, as required by state law.

Many observers wonder if it wouldn't be prudent for the legislature to act now to keep some low-level drug offenders out of prison, by revisiting the drug court reporting requirements that have hampered the ability of some courts to survive.

Drug and DUI courts are still open in Salt Lake City, Taylorsville, Riverdale, Davis County and Salt Lake County.

Late Monday night, the Utah Supreme Court denied an appeal by Ronnie Lee Gardner, a condemned prisoner scheduled for execution by firing squad this Friday, June 18. The default method of execution in Utah is by lethal injection but prisoners are allowed a firing squad if they so choose.

In a 57-page ruling, the justices unanimously turned down Gardner's challenge to his death sentence. Associate Chief Justice Matthew B. Durrant wrote that Gardner's claims could have been raised more than a decade ago, and that he has been treated fairly throughout the course of his quarter-century of appeals.

Capital Murder Conviction

Gardner was convicted in 1985 for capital murder stemming from the fatal courthouse shooting of attorney Michael Burdell as Gardner was attempting escape during a hearing where he faced another murder charge.

The Utah Supreme Court said it wasn't persuaded by Gardner's argument that state law controlling when post-conviction appeals can be filed should be set aside in his case. The justices wrote that Utah courts have "endeavored scrupulously" to protect Gardner's rights. "We are firmly convinced that he has been treated justly and fairly," wrote Durrant in the ruling.

Challenge to Order to Carry Out Sentence Rejected

Last week, the justices upheld a lower court's ruling that Gardner couldn't challenge the order to carry out his death sentence, though he could challenge the sentence itself. Gardner's attorneys had asked the Supreme Court to reverse a state court's order of execution and instead impose a lifetime prison sentence.

Gardner was dealt a second blow on Monday when the Utah Board of Pardons and Parole denied his bid for clemency. Gardner's lawyers had argued Gardner suffered abuse as a child and, if allowed to live, would devote his remaining time to helping troubled kids.

He offered to turn over a 160-acre parcel of land in northern Utah to be turned into an organic farm and residential treatment center for victims of abuse. It's unknown at this point whether Gardner and his attorneys will file any more appeals, including one to the U.S. Supreme Court.

You may have heard of a new law that went into effect at the end of February that reverses a complete ban on guns in national parks. Now, owners of properly permitted guns are allowed to carry their guns in the parks. What you may not have heard is that it remains illegal to shoot guns in national parks and national wildlife refuges.

The purpose of the new law is simple: to make it easier for gun owners with proper permits to travel between state and federal lands. The new law does not override federal anti-poaching laws. These laws prohibit discharging weapons and killing wildlife in national parks. Guns are also still banned from all federal buildings, including visitor centers and rangers' offices.

Burden on the Gun Owner to Research Local Laws

While the purpose of the law is simple, figuring out whether it is legal to take your gun into the park you're visiting is more complicated. Guns can be carried into the park if the owner has a valid gun permit from their home state and the state they are visiting recognizes the validity of that permit. Gun owners must confirm that their home state's permit will be recognized in any states in which they travel while visiting the national parks.

Gun owners should consider that some parks span more than one state. For example, Yellowstone National Park spans Montana, Wyoming and Idaho, and each of those states has its own gun laws. Gun owners are responsible for researching the laws of all states they will be visiting to ensure they follow all local laws.

The National Park Service still discourages people from bringing their weapons into parks. They remind gun owners that there are no self-defense provisions in the anti-poaching laws. Rather than a loaded and readily accessible weapon, park officials say the best line of defense against wild animals is to keep a safe distance from them. Visitors should hike in groups, make noise, and keep an eye out for animals. Bear spray has been proven to be a good final line of defense against a charging animal.

Check the Web site of the park you will be visiting for information on park policies and for links to state gun laws.

The Utah Division of Wildlife Resources has announced that, for the first time, every hunter who wants to hunt wild turkeys in Utah can do so. Hunters no longer need a limited-entry permit to hunt wild turkeys this spring. Permits for Utah's first general statewide turkey hunt went on sale on February 16. The general turkey permits are not limited in number, so they will remain available until the season ends on May 31.

There will be two general hunts. The first hunt will be a special youth hunt held from April 30 to May 2. Hunters that are 15 years old and younger can participate in the youth hunt. Youth must have a general statewide hunting permit to participate.

The second hunt is open to anyone who buys a statewide general turkey permit and this hunt runs from May 3 to May 31. Kids who buy a permit for the youth hunt can also participate in the general statewide hunt.

Permits can be purchased at http://wildlife.utah.gov. They also can be purchased from Division of Wildlife Resources offices or from over 300 hunting license agents across Utah.

Some additional information relating to limited-entry permits:

• Hunters who already obtained a limited-entry turkey permit cannot also purchase a general turkey permit (only one turkey permit per hunter a year)
• Hunters who drew a limited-entry permit cannot participate in the youth hunt
• Hunters will not lose any of their limited-entry turkey bonus points by buying a general turkey permit

If you have any other questions, you should call your local Division of Wildlife Resources office or DWR's Salt Lake City office at (801) 538-4700.