Introduction Criminal Justice was a very important operation in the executive branch of Utah government. The most important thing for the criminal justice operation was to keep everything in check and to stay out of the newspaper. The operation is obviously necessary, but Governors do not like to discuss the details about what goes on. Governors Leavitt and Walker were smart; they selected very competent individuals to handle criminal justice and they expected their appointees to do the job. Our interaction with the governors, therefore, did not occur when things were going well; we met when there was a crisis, a problem, an issue that needed to be resolved. Our department was different than work force services, health and human services, or natural resources; it was an organization that was charged to take care of the criminal element in our society–a necessary evil. Any elected official wants to stay as far away from that as possible. Mike Sibbett was Chairman, Utah Board of Pardons and Parole with Governors Leavitt and Walker. He also served for two years as Chairman of the Council of Criminal and Juville Justice (CCJJ), on the executive committee of Utah’s Sentencing Commission and worked very closely (more…)
