There are roughly more than 400 cold cases throughout Utah which include homicides, missing persons, and unidentified deceased persons. Last legislative session, Utah lawmakers passed Senate Bill 160 which required all law enforcement agencies in Utah to enter their cold cases and missing persons cases into the database. The Utah Department of Public Safety (DPS) is spearheading the effort and has been provided funding for the database and for a fulltime cold case analyst. Four divisions within DPS will support the database and its goal of bringing justice to victims and their families. The Department’s Crime Lab, State Bureau of Investigation (SBI), State Information and Analysis Center (SIAC) and the Bureau of Criminal Identification (BCI) will all have a hand in supporting cases entered into the database.

As part of the requirements of Senate Bill 160, cases that remain unsolved at least 3 years after the crime occurred, or any homicide that has gone unsolved, must be submitted into the database.

Along with the support from Senator Weiler, the development of the database was a collaborative effort between the Department of Public Safety, the Salt Lake County District Attorney’s Office, Salt Lake City Police, Unified Police Department, the Chiefs and Sheriffs Association, the Utah Cold Case Coalition, Statewide Association of Prosecutors among others.

Law Enforcement wanting to add a cold case to the website can contact gmcneil@utah.gov