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Utah Democrats are fuming, but Republicans see the system working as intended.
"This upsets me. It's frustrating," said Rep. Lynn Hemingway when told that a prosecutor is seeking to drop all the criminal corruption charges against former three-term Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff.
The Millcreek Democrat served on a special House committee that investigated the activities of Shurtleff's handpicked successor, former Attorney General John Swallow.
Swallow's case was intermingled with Shurtleff's, he said, and the panel tuned up evidence against both former Republican officeholders.
"I just can't believe this case couldn't be put together," Hemingway said. "... It's a shame to see a technicality upset this apple cart."
In the end, the House committee issued a scathing report, alleging that a pay-to-play scheme had essentially put a for-sale sign on the attorney general's office.
Shurtleff and Swallow originally were charged as co-defendants in July 2014.
Their prosecutions later were separated. The office of Salt Lake County District Attorney Sim Gill, a Democrat, is proceeding with his case against Swallow.
But Davis County Attorney Troy Rawlings, a Republican who took on the Shurtleff prosecution, filed a motion Monday seeking to dismiss all the charges, including counts of accepting a prohibited gift, bribery to dismiss a criminal proceeding, official misconduct and obstruction of justice. Possible punishment: up to 30 years in prison.
Rawlings listed multiple reasons for giving up on the case, including his inability to provide Shurtleff's defense team with discovery material, concerns over speedy-trial violations and insufficient evidence on some counts. A recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling added to the challenge.
Rep. Brad Dee, R-Ogden, who sat on the House investigative committee, said the recent high court ruling regarding corruption charges against former Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell changed the legal landscape.
"Troy Rawlings is weighing the evidence based on new criteria," Dee said. "The Supreme Court has spoken loudly on what you can consider as bribery and fraud."
Another committee member, Rep. Lee Perry, R-Brigham City, said he, too, respects Rawlings' call.
"Prosecutors have a job to do. They have to look at everything and back it up," said Perry, who also is a lieutenant in the Utah Highway Patrol. "I leave it up to the prosecutor. That's part of the system."
Democrats aren't accepting that rationale. The push to dismiss the charges against Shurtleff is "disconcerting," said Rep. Rebecca Chavez-Houck, D-Salt Lake City.
"Those of us on the House investigative committee did our level best to restore the public trust through our investigation, findings and recommendations," she said. "Utahns deserve to have their faith restored regarding this case. I hope that will happen."
Tossing out the case will erode the public's confidence in the judicial system, said Tim Chambless, a University of Utah political science professor who also is affiliated with the Hinckley Institute of Politics.
"For the past 2½ years, the number one law enforcement officer in the state — three terms, 12 years — has been under [criminal charges]," he said. "When people see the charges dropped, they will be confused and angry. What this does is undermine and undercut our ongoing experiment in democracy."
State Sen. Jim Dabakis, D-Salt Lake City, said it appears as if there are two criminal-justice systems: one for the well-to-do and well-connected; another for everyone else.
"This was the entire American criminal-justice system on trial," he said. "There seems to be a lot more justice if you've got money and connections."
Senate Minority Leader Gene Davis, D-Salt Lake City, called the latest twist "disturbing."
"These were criminal acts [Shurtleff and Swallow] were arrested for. What's changed?" he asked. "Can we just walk away from all the evidence presented in the [Utah] House committee?"
Other Republican members of the investigative committee, including Chairman Jim Dunnigan, R-Taylorsville, could not be reached for comment.
Gov. Gary Herbert, who is in Cleveland for the Republican National Convention, declined to comment, as did Lt. Gov. Spencer Cox and Utah Republican Party Chairman James Evans.