Lawmakers and advocates discuss bill aimed at solving violent crimes
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- Ogden Police Chief Jake Sube speaks at a press conference in support of H.B. 137 on Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2026.
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- Rep. Tyler Clancy (R-Provo) speaks at a press conference in support of H.B. 137 at the Utah State Capitol on Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2026. Clancy is the bill’s sponsor.
SALT LAKE CITY — Lawmakers and advocates are looking to use this year’s legislative session boost efforts by law enforcement agencies across the state to solve violent crimes.
During a press conference at the Utah State Capitol Tuesday morning, legislators and advocates spoke with the regional press about H.B. 137, a bill to create a Violent Crime Clearance Rate Fund that would award grants to help law enforcement agencies across the state in solving crimes.
Bill sponsor Rep. Tyler Clancy (R-Provo) introduced the press conference with a dose of reality.
“Violence impacts us all,” he said. “It’s not someone else’s problem.”
Rep. Verona Mauga (D-West Valley City) said she supports the bill because her focus has always been on victims and their families.
“Too many people are still waiting for answers in cases that have gone cold,” she said. “That kind of uncertainty is incredibly painful. It doesn’t end when the headlines fade. Families live with unanswered questions for years, sometimes decades.”
She said that she likes the focus of the legislation.
“What I appreciate about this approach is it’s targeted,” she said. “It’s not a blank check and it’s not about expanding surveillance or unrelated enforcement. It’s about keeping the work focused and on clearing cases and providing clarity for families that have been waiting for answers.”
Also speaking Tuesday was Jason Olin, senior government affairs manager with the Niskanen Center.
“The violent crime clearance rate in the United States has fallen consistently since the 1960s,” he said. “While Utah is one of the safer states in the country, data indicates that many violent crimes in this state still go unsolved. For example, since 2019, the violent crime clearance rate in Utah has hovered around 53%. A violent crime clearance rate of 53% means that there are family and friends of victims who are denied the justice that should be theirs by right. It also means that roughly half of the violent crimes that are committed in the state do not lead to any punishment. Even Utah’s homicide clearance rate of 72% — which is well above the national average — still leaves more than one in four murders in the state unsolved.”
He said the most important variable in crime deterrence is the perceived probability of punishment among would-be offenders.
“Those who believe they’ll get caught don’t commit crimes,” he said. “Those who think they’ll get away with it do. Allowing violent crimes to go unsolved sends a signal to criminals that they have a good chance of getting away with it and the result is more violence. By contrast, solving more crimes sends the opposite message.”
Olin said that unsolved cases don’t mean law enforcement apathy or investigative incompetence.
“Law enforcement in Utah does everything in its power to bring violent criminals to justice,” he said. “However, police departments — both urban and rural — are today faced with numerous challenges that have strained capacity across the board, including the ability to investigate and solve violent crimes.”
He said that H.B. 137 would help departments that have been strained gain the resources to better investigate violent crimes and help close out those investigations.
“H.B. 137 is so important because it will create a Violent Crime Clearance Rate Fund to provide law enforcmeent agencies in Utah with additional resources to help them improve their ability to solve violent crimes,” he said. “These resources will go to police departments of all sizes in both urban and rural jurisdictions throughout the state. Finally, the awards are structured in a manner that is going to allow researchers to conduct a robust evaluation of policies and procedures to identify best practices to improve clearance rates that can hopefully be replicated and scaled throughout the state.”
Ogden Police Chief Jake Sube also spoke at Tuesday’s press conference.
“The Violent Crime Clearance Rate Fund provides targeted support to help law enforcement agencies strengthen the investigative side of policing, which is where the real work of accountability happens,” he said. “This is especially important for agencies with limited operational resources, including small and rural communities. Not every agency has access to specialized investigators, forensic tools and analytical support. This bill helps level the playing field for victims and communities so they receive the same commitment in justice, regardless of the size and location of where they live or the agency that serves them.”
He said there are many things that H.B. 137 is not.
“This legislation does not mandate how agencies police,” he said. “It does not expand enforcement authority. It doesn’t impose penalties. It respects local control while offering practical ways to invest in investigative capacity, whether that means training detectives, improving forensic turnaround time, supporting witnesses or upgrading investigative technologies.”
Carl Hollan of the Utah Statewide Association of Prosecutors said the legislation is an investment in everyone in Utah.
“This bill is an investment into the families of Utah to ensure that our families, our loved ones can be safe, and that those who predate on those family members and those who would harm others will be held accountable and brought to justice,” he said.
Clancy said, in closing, that people are united behind this bill.
“Across the partisan spectrum, across the continuum of the folks that are working in the system that whenever a case number is assigned to a rape, a robbery, a homicide or an aggravated assault, that it is not just a number in the state of Utah,” he said. “That is a human being. That is a human being that deserves expertise and who deserves dogged pursuit of justice, and that is what we are trying to do today with House Bill 137.”
As of Tuesday, H.B. 137 has had its first hearing in the House Rules Committee.
