In any profession, it’s great to be recognized by your peers. They understand what you do better than anyone else. If they compliment you, you know it means something. That is why the Academy Awards is such a big deal in Hollywood. The voters are other filmmakers who understand the struggles their colleagues go through.

As summer comes to a close, students throughout Utah are packing their bags every morning and heading to school. While classes, homework, and extracurricular activities are ramping up, so are the number of students getting in trouble with the law.

Writing is such a big part of everyday life, that we rarely give it a second thought. When you post your thoughts on the Internet or sign for a package, you are creating a record that can be used for your benefit or detriment. One of the most common crimes in Utah actually has to do with writing, and that is forgery. Under state law, forgery is when someone pretends to be another person using the written word. The forger either alters the text or creates new text as someone else. They may also say they are acting on behalf of the other person when they are not.

Each year, the Utah Legislature meets for a legislative session that lasts 45 calendar days (starting in January and ending in March). During this session, hundreds of bills* to change the laws in Utah are proposed.

Burglary is one of the most common crimes in Utah. in 2023, there were about 5500 cases reported to the Utah Bureau of Criminal Identification. This crime may include a sentence of prison time, but if you have a good attorney behind you, that may not be the case.

The most recent data from the Utah Department of Public Safety shows that about 30 people are arrested for DUI every day. If you have ever been in trouble with the law for driving under the influence in Utah, you may consider getting your DUI expunged from your records. When a record is expunged, it becomes sealed. No one can unseal the record without a court order. This means you can tell a prospective employer or landlord that the crime never took place. However, because the Beehive State takes DUIs seriously, it’s one of the harder crimes to get expunged from your record.

Whether you are traveling to Utah for vacation or business, or you are just passing through, the last thing you want to deal with is a criminal charge in a state far from home. Navigating an unfamiliar state’s laws and systems can be complicated and overwhelming. Below are a few things you should know to get a better picture of what an arrest in Utah might mean for you.

If you are charged with a crime in Utah, the process will follow Utah’s criminal procedure rules. These rules govern the series of proceedings through which the local, state and federal government enforces substantive criminal law. The rules of the criminal procedure vary widely in different municipalities and at the state and federal level. The expert legal team at Brown, Bradshaw & Moffat have decades of experience with criminal procedure in Utah. We can help you navigate the rules and present a strong defense.