Nicholas Pensari

Today, Salt Lake County District Attorney Sim Gill announced charges have been filed for the June 19th Memory Grove Brush Fire in Salt Lake City. The defendant is charged with: • 1 count Class A Misdemeanor Reckless Burning • 1 count Class A Misdemeanor Possession of a Schedule I/II Controlled Substance • 1 count Class B Misdemeanor Use of Drug Paraphernalia “When conditions are extreme, all fires are potentially serious. These fires start quickly, spread furiously, and burn intensely. If you use fireworks or start a campfire, even if it is legal to do so, and you cause a wildland fire or the fire damages homes or structures or injures someone, we will file criminal charges against you and will prosecute you to the fullest extent of the law.” - Salt Lake County District Attorney Sim Gill

Today, SLCo DA Sim Gill announced a judge sentenced Kennedy Grant Lund to two life sentences without the possibility of parole for murdering 2 people in 2018. A judge sentenced the defendant to life without the possibility of parole on June 3, 2026, after passionate pleas for the maximum penalty from the victims' families during the sentencing hearing.

Last week, District Attorney Sim Gill joined Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall, Utah’s Promise CEO Bill Crim, and Salt Lake City School District Superintendent Elizabeth Grant to commit to My Brother’s Keeper Promise SLC. This is a promise to centering and improving outcomes for young men of color and other youth historically underserved by public systems. We are grateful to be joining together with these institutions and for making the commitment to helping the youth of Salt Lake City succeed and thrive!

Last week, the Salt Lake County District Attorney’s Office had the opportunity to host SLCPD’s Police Explorers at our office for a training on the criminal justice system. DA Sim Gill and his leadership team spent a few hours with these future law enforcement officers as they dove deep on how the system works, what it means to be a prosecutor, and ways that we can keep our community safe.

For the last two days, the Salt Lake County District Attorney’s Office has hosted a critical conversation on strangulation investigations for nearly 100 law enforcement partners, prosecutors, and social workers. Strangulation is a leading risk factor regarding domestic violence homicides. Victims who experience non-fatal strangulation by an intimate partner are 750% more likely to be murdered by that partner in the future. Salt Lake County is dedicated to preventing domestic violence homicides and training our law enforcement officers about the danger of strangulation is one step to accomplishing those goals. Information is power! We are grateful to our partners for keeping our community safe!

Charges filed against Johnny Brickman Wall. Read more: slco.to/rfia6dll

Our Chief Deputy, who worked in 3rd District Veterans Treatment Court, spoke at a graduation for the Veterans from the 18-month program just last week. He told the grads that recovery is built like a log cabin: one day, one choice at a time. These Veterans served our country honorably, but were facing felony level charges. However, now after participation in the rigorous program --that requires participants to undergo counseling, abstain from alcohol, and get tested regularly for illegal drug use --they have either had their charges reduced or dismissed.

DA Gill went to the State of the City last night in his role as the SLC Prosecutor & SLCo DA. @slcmayor said in her address that the most fundamental responsibility of local government is safety. She discussed collaboration across the justice system to help individuals break cycles of repeated involvement. Recent reports show that from 2019–2025, homicides dropped 47% and car thefts dropped 42% in Salt Lake City.

Justice, Fairness, Equality, and Truth and more than mere words. But are the ideals that inform, compel us in our shared mutuality towards love, respect, and to recognizing the intrinsic work of every individual. If you would like to see DA Sim Gill’s full remarks from the MLK Day Celebration, see the link in our bio!

"There is still work to be done." DA Sim Gill was honored to give the welcoming remarks at the NAACP Salt Lake Branch's Annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day Celebration. Thank you to Ms. Jeannetta Williams for the invitation to recognize Dr. King, Ms. Rosa Parks, and our community's first responders.

Today, SLCo Leaders joined the Community Partners Against Hate to speak out against hate crimes and bias incidents during United Against Hate Week. UAHW is a national effort to stop hate and implicit biases that are a dangerous threat to the safety and civility of our neighborhoods. This week is timelier than ever before. In recent years, Utah and SLCo has seen hate crimes directed at individuals based on religion, race, political expressions, sexual orientation, gender, and ethnicity. The way we treat one another matters. SLCo is committed to building communities grounded in safety, kindness, and mutual respect.

We are grateful to the nearly 300 individuals that attended, both in-person and virtually. Salt Lake County is dedicated to providing quality care, in a coordinated way, to keep our communities safe and help those that need it most!

This week, the Salt Lake County District Attorney’s Office, along with the Utah Shattering Silence Coalition, the Utah Coalition for Severe Mental Illness, hosted a symposium on criminal justice and mental health. We were joined by many speakers from around the county and state!

Today, an Int'l cohort came to our office as part of the @StateDept International Leadership program. The gathering was to talk about the rule of law and the judicial system. DA Gill and other members of our office discussed our legal system and the responsibility this office has

We planted a tree in memory of Norlin Cruz. This tree serves as a memorial to him and all victims. We also presented the inaugural Norlin Cruz Child Advocacy Award to Dr. Laskey with Center for Safe and Healthy Families. Thank you to SLC’s Urban Forestry Div. for their help.

DA Gill announced 15 charges, including 10 felonies, filed against David Anthony Mora. The charges include allegations of kidnapping, rape, child abuse, & crashing into home. Read more here: slco.to/adxghktq

May is Mental Health Awareness Month. In the same way we do not stigmatize a broken arm or diabetes, we should not stigmatize mental health. For those in need of support, there are people ready and willing to help: @uofu_hmhi & Valley Behavioral Health

This week, DA Gill had the opportunity to speak with the Salt Lake Interfaith Roundtable on the rise in hate incidents in our community and why reporting is so important. Reporting is the first step to eradicating hate in our state.

"When crime happens in our community, it causes injuries to victims, offenders, and the communities in which crime occurs. Justice is the repairing of all three injuries." DA Gill spoke w/ the @SLRotary24 this week about restorative justice w/o compromising public safety.