Three letters.
That’s all I need to tell you how much public safety means to me as your representative on the Salt Lake County Council. Those letters have taken be to the Legislature and back, pushing for a change that I believe has made this county a safer place.
But I’m not going to tell you the letters just yet. That would ruin the dramatic effect. But I promise I’ll tell you right after this story.
It wasn’t long ago that Taylorsville decided to leave the Salt Lake County Sheriff’s Office to create its own police department. Remember that? The city hoped its departure would lead to more local control and better law enforcement. Unfortunately, the county couldn’t do much to allay the city’s concerns. The sheriff’s office was led by a sheriff, and the cities were simply customers who had contracted with the office for services.
But times have changed. You probably heard that Taylorsville is returning to share services with the county. But this time, it is returning to a Unified Police Department that gives power to the cities instead of the sheriff.
That regional policing model is where my three letters come from. The Unified Police Department – or UPD – is something I have pushed hard for.
You can count on me to keep pushing. I believe regional policing is the most effective, and the most affordable, way to fight crime. That’s the kind of combination I would call good public policy.