Feds say they have turned over hundreds of thousands of Shurtleff documents

SALT LAKE CITY — The U.S. Attorney's Office says hundreds of thousands of documents that it believes are relevant to the case involving former Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff have already been turned over, and if prosecutors want more they'll have to explain why.

Davis County Attorney Troy Rawlings, who is prosecuting Shurtleff on state charges, filed a motion to force the U.S. Department of Justice to hand over evidence from its investigation into Shurtleff and former Attorney General John Swallow two years ago. That investigation led to a decision not to file federal charges against Shurtleff in 2013.

Shurtleff himself joined Rawlings' motion earlier this month asking for the evidence to be released.

On Friday, the federal government responded to that motion, saying it has released what it has and questioning whether a state judge has the authority to force the release of federal documents.

"The (FBI) has shared with the state all of the relevant documents it believes it has related to the prosecution of Mr. Shurtleff. That amounts to hundreds of thousands of pages of documents (or their electronic equivalent), and includes any information the FBI might have that would be required to be disclosed," the response filed in 3rd District Court states. "If the state wants the FBI to produce documents that have not been determined to be relevant, federal regulations … require the FBI to ask the state to explain the relevance of the material it seeks so that the FBI can determine if federal law allows the disclosure of those documents."

Rawlings has implied that the feds are playing games with the evidence.

"It appears the DOJ has built fences, with little gates that only they can lock and unlock, around related persons, events and investigations (or possibly lack thereof)," the prosecutor wrote in his motion. "They control what state prosecutors know and with respect to whom."

Rawlings also told the DOJ that if it wants to control prosecutorial discretion, it should prosecute Shurtleff, "and in the process, look at everyone who has criminal exposure."

Shurtleff believes the government has information relating to key witnesses and allegations associated with the case, including evidence that could show he didn't do anything wrong, according to his attorney Richard Van Wagoner.

Van Wagoner has suggested the government is withholding the evidence because it could implicate other people.

But in its response, the DOJ said it doesn't have to blanketly turn over everything it has collected.

"Deciding this case requires the court to decide a single narrow jurisdictional question: does this court have jurisdiction to compel a federal agency to produce documents when the party seeking the documents has not complied with the federal agency's Touhy regulations?" the response states.

Touhy refers to a U.S. Supreme Court decision recognizing that Congress has given administrative agencies the authority to make regulations for the custody, use and preservation of their records.

The DOJ noted that it had already turned over "recordings, transcripts and summaries of dozens of interviews; recordings of dozens of telephone conversations and voicemails; financial records from about two dozen financial institutions; and tax documents," according to its response.

Shurtleff is accused of accepting gifts, bribery to dismiss a criminal proceeding, obstruction of justice, and official misconduct. He faces up to 30 years in prison if convicted. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges.

Swallow faces a dozen felony charges, including pattern of unlawful activity, accepting gifts, bribery and money laundering in state court. He has also pleaded not guilty.

Oral arguments on the motions are scheduled to be heard in court on Dec. 1. Shurtleff's trial is scheduled to begin May 10.

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