[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 145 (1999), Part 17]
[Senate]
[Page 24639]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]


[[Page 24639]]

       SESQUICENTENNIAL OF THE SALT LAKE COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE

  Mr. HATCH. Mr. President, this month the Salt Lake County Sheriff's 
Office is celebrating their sesquicentennial anniversary. The Sheriff's 
Office is a proud tradition of Utah, and I am grateful to them for 
keeping Salt Lake County a safe place to live and visit.
  Pioneers first settled the Salt Lake Valley in 1847. In March 1849, 
they elected Brigham Young to be their Governor. Then, in October of 
the same year, John D. Parker was elected to serve as the first sheriff 
of what would become the state of Utah. Later, in 1852, after the 
federal government ratified the creation of the office of county 
sheriff, James B. Ferguson became John D. Parker's successor. Sheriff 
Ferguson was the first officially elected sheriff of Salt Lake County. 
This makes the Salt Lake County Sheriff's Office one of the oldest law 
enforcement agencies in the west. Today, the 1,254 employees of the 
Sheriff's Office continue that tradition.
  Today, there are more than 835,000 citizens of Salt Lake County. 
These citizens are served by the Sheriff's Office through patrols, 
investigations, jails--which have held Ted Bundy, Mark Hoffman, and 
Charles Manson among others--court security, civil service, and 
specialized services, including K-9, air support, SWAT, and search and 
rescue units. The Sheriff's Office also coordinates local, state, and 
federal task forces.
  Some of the more heroic deeds have received national recognition. 
Captain Lloyd Prescott is just one example of the kind of person we 
have working for the people of Utah. During a hostage situation at a 
Salt Lake County library, then Lieutenant Lloyd Prescott offered 
himself as an additional hostage to see if he could defuse the 
situation. After almost five hours, it was obvious that the suspect was 
becoming more agitated and that he would likely harm one of the 
hostages. Lieutenant Prescott then announced himself as a police 
officer and was forced to shoot the suspect. For this act of bravery 
and courage, Lieutenant Prescott was awarded the Presidential 
Commendation from President Clinton, the Governor's Commendation from 
Governor Leavitt, Officer of the Year from the International 
Association of the Chiefs of Police, Officer of the Year from the 
International Foot Printers Association, and Deputy Sheriff of the Year 
from the National Sheriff's Association. Captain Prescott continues to 
serve the citizens of Salt Lake County and the Sheriff's Office as the 
Division Commander for the Special Operations Division.
  This is just one example of the many acts of courage, bravery, and 
simple acts of service performed daily by employees of the Salt Lake 
County Sheriff's Office. I want to extend a public thank you to all the 
employees and deputies of the Sheriff's Office for their hard work, 
service, and dedication to upholding justice and the rule of law. I 
offer my hearty congratulations to them on this landmark anniversary.

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