SALT LAKE CITY — State legislators hope to help reduce the number of unsolved violent crimes in Utah with a bill designed to create a grant program to help law enforcement investigate crimes and deliver justice for victims.
“Since 2019, the violent crime clearance rate in Utah has hovered right around 53 percent. A violent crime clearance rate around 53 percent means that there are family and friends of victims who are denied the justice that should be theirs by right," said Jason Olin, Senior Government Affairs Manager, Niskanen Center
Lawmakers agree, saying there are too many families with unanswered questions, and believe the Violent Crime Clearance Rate Fund could help.
“When a mom sets the dinner table, and there’s always going to be that empty space where her beautiful daughter once sat, we can never show that in a number. We can never show that in a data point," said Rep. Tyler Clancy (R-Provo).
The hope is that Utah residents will see fewer empty seats at dinner tables.
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Agencies that receive grants from the fund could use the money to help investigate violent crimes through enhanced forensic tools, training, witness support, and strategic analysis with targeted support for rural agencies. That could include acquiring or upgrading technology related to evidence collection or processing.
“It doesn’t end when the headlines fade," said Rep. Verona Mauga (D-West Valley City). "Families live with unanswered questions for years, sometimes decades.”
Marilyn Stevenson is one Utah mom who has felt the pain of waiting.
“Justin went missing the week of Thanksgiving. So I was supposed to meet him, and he wasn’t there. I knew something was wrong. I couldn’t get a hold of him. I knew something was wrong," she said.
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More than 7 years after Stevenson’s son, Justin Hooiman, went missing, she and her family received the closure they needed because of DNA testing.
“When they finally found Justin, they used a grant that had been given to send his bones back to be tested, and I am so grateful they did that because he was found at the end of March, and it was August before Corey came and knocked on my door and said it was him. We have the evidence it was him," Stevenson explained.
Stevenson has seen firsthand how technology advancements and resources make a difference in these types of cases. With legislation like HB137, she believes other families will be able to get the answers they need.
“I can’t describe the peace that it brings to bring your child home," she said. "I wish that for every family. We have so many of them.”
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