Davis County attorney commends investigative bureau for high caseloads, awards and rapid use-of-force reviews

Davis County Attorney Troy Rawlings used an April 8 Davis County Commission meeting to publicly recognize members of his office's investigative bureau, highlighting the team's awards, multiagency partnerships and workload that he said supports prosecutions across the county.

Rawlings told the commission the group now represents 161 collective years of law enforcement experience, including about 114 years assigned to investigations, and credited the team with winning awards at the local, state and national level. "The value of Davis County is primarily our employees. Our primary asset is those who work here at Davis County and serve you as members of the public," Rawlings said.

Rawlings said the bureau has been a consistent partner with federal agencies on child-exploitation and human-trafficking investigations, noting the office's involvement with an FBI child-exploitation task force and asserting the team's work since 2016 contributed to arrests and prosecutions of more than 1,000 perpetrators who came into Davis County. He also cited a national honor his office received, the Bud Kramer award, described in his remarks as an award recognizing top work involving children's justice.

Rawlings described the bureau's role in investigating officer-involved uses of force, saying the county team is statutorily required to coordinate those investigations. He told the commission the office had handled 36 officer-involved-shooting investigations (in his chart through 2023), which involved 68 officers and required coordinating investigators and labs from multiple agencies. Rawlings said the office targets a two-week timeline to produce an investigatory report after a deadly-force incident so prosecuting attorneys can screen the case for possible charges.

Beyond high-profile investigations, Rawlings highlighted routine workload and courtroom support: his office screens about 8,000 cases a year, he said, and investigators assist on roughly 80% of cases that go to trial before a jury. He described specialty-court work tied to drug court and mental-health court, noting two investigators who serve as "trackers" to help supervise and report on participants; Rawlings said those trackers had supported roughly 2,400 people through the programs up to 2023.

Rawlings also listed certifications and assignments among the group, including computer- and cell-phone-forensics training, cross-deputizations with federal partners, forensic interviewers assigned to the Children's Justice Center and participation in drug interdiction strike forces.

Commissioners thanked Rawlings and the team. The recognition took place at the start of the evening meeting that the commission is holding on a trial basis to increase public access.

Rawlings and the commission did not propose any new policy or budget changes during the commendation; the remarks were presented as recognition of staff work and past accomplishments.