Davis County district attorney urges pay increases to retain prosecutors, requests eProsecutor upgrade to meet HB354 reporting

The Davis County district attorney, Troy (first name only in the transcript), told the Davis County Budget Committee on Oct. 25 that maintaining pay increases and merit steps is critical to recruiting and retaining experienced prosecutors and investigators and to protecting public safety.

Troy said Davis County manages a far higher per-prosecutor caseload than recommended and that the office’s experience level produces higher conviction rates when cases go to trial. "For $21.45 per taxpayer, we are doing a better job than Salt Lake County," he said, and warned that cutting cost-of-living adjustments (COLA) or merit increases would jeopardize retention.

Why it matters: Troy told the committee the office typically declines 30 to 40 percent of cases that law enforcement submits because prosecutors screen for a reasonable probability of conviction, a practice he said protects constitutional rights while focusing resources on serious, provable cases. He also said technological and data demands—dash cams, body cams, electronic discovery and expert witnesses—have increased the time required to prepare prosecutions.

Details of the request: The district attorney described two…