Wednesday the Summit County Council unanimously appointed Kacey Bates as sheriff.
Bates has been the interim sheriff since Frank Smith retired in early September.
Summit County Democrats nominated Bates to serve out the remainder of Smith’s term in September. That is the designated process under Utah law, since the former sheriff was also a Democrat.
Bates will now serve as sheriff until 2027.
“I’m deeply invested in this community and serving this community,” she said on KPCW’s “Local News Hour” Oct. 6. “This has been an incredible agency to me, and the community has been great to me. And I’m just honored to be given the privilege of leading as sheriff for Summit County.”
She said her priorities as sheriff include adding a mental health unit to the corrections facility and focusing on the area’s transient population.
A graduate of Weber State University, Bates was born and raised in Summit County.
She joined the sheriff’s office in 1997 as a corrections officer and rose to the post of jail commander. She also served as a detective and school resource officer.
Bates is the second woman in Utah history to serve as a county sheriff. Salt Lake County Sheriff Rosie Rivera, who attended Wednesday's council meeting, became the first in 2017.
