The Transition

For 11 years, I was a prosecutor inside the Salt Lake County District Attorney's Office. that offiice was important to me and I wanted to make it better, so I decided to run for District Attorney. My opponent was my boss. It was not comfortable. But, I believed I could make the office better and so I ran. It was a great journey, but I eventually did not win.

The next day, a member of the Nelson Jones law firm contacted me about coming over to work for them. I wasn't ready to seriously discuss a move at that time, but I did know that working inside the DA's Office was not going to be a long term proposition. I met more with Nelson Jones over the next few weeks and we came to an agreement. My first day would be January 2, 2019, less than two months from the election. A new journey began.

I have now spent 8 months in private practice and working primarily in criminal defense. The transition has been great. It is nice to have clients and to work things out with them. I also enjoy traveling throughout the state and go to different courthouses.

It's been especially meaningful to work out great solutions for clients. I had my first jury trial on the defense side and the judge agreed with my argument that there wasn't enough evidence to turn it over to the jury and therefore dismissed the case. Other clients have appreciated dismissal, the government not filing charges in the first place, or a substantial reduction in charges. This is meaningful work with real people who are dealing with maybe the worst thing that has happened to them. It is a pleasure to help them through it.

The transition has occured and it has been great.