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SALT LAKE CITY — State prosecutors asked a judge Wednesday to dismiss one of the 10 felony public corruption charges against former Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff.
Davis County Attorney Troy Rawlings filed a motion in 3rd District Court to drop a charge for racketeering, saying the state doesn't have a "reasonable probability" of convicting Shurtleff of that charge. He asked Judge Elizabeth Hruby-Mills to dismiss the second-degree felony charge without prejudice, meaning prosecutors could bring it back.
Shurtleff faces nine other felonies, including bribery, illegally accepting gifts, improper use of employee position and obstructing justice.
Rawlings also wrote in his motion that he intends to amend the charges against Shurtleff.
Shurtleff said he was pleased with the decision to drop the racketeering charge.
"It's a big deal. And in our opinion, was mischarged in the first place," Shurtleff said on KSL Newsradio's "Doug Wright Show." "Our argument all along is the facts do not support any of these allegations."
Shurtleff said he is also pleased with prosecutors' decision to separate his case from former Attorney General John Swallow. He said it's wrong for the media to lump him and Swallow together with statements like, "more than 20 charges have been filed against the two."
It's a big deal. And in our opinion, was mischarged in the first place. Our argument all along is the facts do not support any of these allegations.
–Mark Shurtleff on KSL Newsradio's "Doug Wright Show"
"That was a problem with the way it was charged in the first place," Shurtleff said, noting that the Salt Lake County District Attorney's Office "misled the press and public that it was some type of joint prosecution."
Court documents do identify Shurtleff and Swallow as co-defendants. On Tuesday, Salt Lake County District Attorney Sim Gill asked the judge to split the prosecutions of the two men.
Rawlings will now handle the Shurtleff case, while Gill will prosecute Swallow.
Shurtleff called Rawlings a very good prosecutor who he believes is fair and willing to work a case "in the interest of justice."
"That's what he's about," he said. "Not trying to go around and convict people, but to make sure justice is served."
Shurtleff said he anticipates his case will start unfolding in a dramatically different way now. He said he is anxious to have his day in court as soon as possible. Shurtleff said his defense team will either attempt to have the case thrown out at the preliminary hearing stage, like former West Valley police detective Shaun Cowley's manslaughter case was, or be found not guilty at trial.
Swallow is charged with two misdemeanors and 11 felonies, including racketeering, bribery, misuse of public money and falsifying government records.
Racketeering, also called pattern of unlawful activity, is part of Utah's organized crime law, which is typically used against gangs and drug rings. It is often difficult to prove.
According to charging documents, Shurtleff and Swallow are accused of participating with a group of people, directly or indirectly, in a pattern of illegal behavior. The activities include "multiple instances of witness tampering, obstructing justice, soliciting bribes, money laundering and accepting gifts by a public officer."
Shurtleff, however, said the charges contain "no allegation that (Swallow and I) did anything together."
