Salt Lake County District Attorney Sim Gill has confirmed that he and Davis County Attorney Troy Rawlings are looking into whether or not the Utah Attorney General’s office has violated any state laws.
Gill says in collaboration with Federal authorities they’ve been engaged in a parallel investigation of issues related to the Utah Attorney General’s office and others. Gill would not, however, specifically name former Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff or current Attorney General John Swallow as the focus or target of the investigation. He also says the investigation should not be interpreted to mean the Attorney General’s office has done anything wrong.
“Mere allegations are not a sufficient basis to imply any criminal wrongdoing," he says. "We’ll continue to work with the appropriate authorities and review this until this matter is resolved and concluded from our perspective as to any state charges.”
In the past, Swallow has said that several of the accusations and subsequent investigations are politically motivated, but Gill, who is a Democrat, says that’s one of the reasons why this is a joint investigation with Republican Davis County Attorney Troy Rawlings.
“The issue as it came to us, came to us in the context of being public prosecutors," Gill says. "I don’t think public prosecutors are partisan. We are respectful to the law and the application of the law and what the evidence shows us.”
The U.S. Justice Department, the Lt. Governor’s office, and the Utah State Bar are also investigating various allegations made against Swallow.