The Senate Law Enforcement Criminal Justice Confirmation Committee unanimously favorably recommended Lisa Crawford to serve as a pro tempore member of the Utah Board of Pardons and Parole following a confirmation hearing during which Crawford described her background in juvenile and criminal defense and discussed how she would apply statute and legislative intent when making decisions.

Crawford, introduced to the committee as the governor's nominee, said she would balance “public safety, victim input, and rehabilitation of the offender” and that she would “apply the law and be guided by legislation and intent, court decisions, rules, sentencing guidelines, and evidence based resources.”

Crawford told the committee she was raised in Ohio, moved to Utah for college, earned dual bachelor’s degrees in psychology and sociology at the University of Utah, attended J. Reuben Clark Law School at Brigham Young University, worked nearly 19 years at the Utah County Public Defender’s Office, and most recently has been in part-time solo practice. She described earlier work supervising youth at the Genesis Youth Center and serving as a juvenile probation officer with the Fourth District Juvenile Court in American Fork.

When a senator asked how she would determine “intent” when applying statute, Crawford said: “When you apply statute, you first look at the clear language of the statute. . . . When there’s ambiguous terms, you do look at legislative intent, which includes having to review legislative history, hearings, case law, other case decisions that have analyzed what that statute’s intent was.”

Don Blanchard, Crawford’s father‑in‑law and a former member and chair of the Utah Board of Pardons and Parole, spoke during public comment in support of the nomination, saying he has “engaged in discussions about criminal justice issues with her from time to time” and that he knows “of her genuine concern about the justice system, about fairness and equity.”

Senator Escamilla moved that the committee favorably recommend Crawford to the full Senate. The chair ruled the motion passed unanimously. The chair announced the full Senate confirmation will be held during the interim on August 20 at 4:00 p.m.

The hearing record shows Crawford emphasized procedural caution: she said she would not rush decisions and would rely on risk and needs assessments, statutory guidance, sentencing rules and court decisions when reviewing cases. No committee member registered opposition during the hearing.