The Wasatch County Manager’s Office hired retired Judge Richard McKelvie in March to review the allegations.
McKelvie released his findings Sept.19 in a 65-page report.
Among the allegations detailed in the report were misuse of county resources, perceived favoritism and retaliation against employees who raised concerns.
In the wake of the report, County Manager Dustin Grabau said he hopes the community felt reassured that their concerns were taken seriously.
He also encouraged people to reach out sooner rather than later with any concerns, noting the judge reviewed years of complaints.
“Some of the accusations deal with matters that are in excess of seven years ago,” he said. “My hope is that employees will see through this process that we do want to address their concerns, and that our policies give mechanisms for employees to be able to raise those issues.”
McKelvie’s report documents two cases when deputies were placed on leave after filing complaints against the office. Separately, a corrections officer was put on paid leave after agreeing to speak with McKelvie.
The judge wrote, “The timing left a clear impression that placing this employee on administrative leave was an act of retaliation in response to her interview with me.” He said other employees were hesitant to cooperate with the investigation for fear of consequences.
Grabau said his staff is open to hearing any concerns from sheriff’s employees about possible retaliation.
“They can go to my office, they can go to the county council, they can go to the county attorney’s office,” he said.
Grabau’s office shared a list of how it plans to respond to the report. In many instances, it intends to standardize policies and practices.
Grabau said there’s a difference between county-wide policies and department-level policies, and county leaders plan to revisit some of those policies to ensure they’re fair.
The judge also recommended an audit of the sheriff's office. He described allegations that Sheriff Jared Rigby hosted a post-election banquet and bought gifts for other members of the Utah Sheriffs Association using county funds.
Rigby also allegedly used his county vehicle to drive to a second job with the Brigham Young University police department.
Grabau said he has already taken steps toward an audit.
“I’ve actually already met with our clerk-auditor, Joey Granger, on looking into the matters as recommended by the report, and they’re still in the process of gathering information,” he said.
As of the end of August, the judge had billed the county about $34,000 for his investigation. Grabau said he expects that cost to rise by a few thousand dollars at the end of this month.
McKelvie’s work did not include investigating any allegations of criminal conduct in the sheriff’s office. A separate investigation by the Cache County Sheriff's Office did not make any findings of chargeable criminal conduct, according to a footnote in McKelvie’s report.
Rigby released a statement Tuesday in response to the investigation. He said the sheriff's office will be “progressive, positive and inclusive” in implementing some of the judge’s recommendations and offering development opportunities to employees.
He announced the creation of a new Professional Standards Division that will handle internal investigations and report directly to the sheriff. And he said the sheriff’s office will pursue accreditation and regular audits from an independent professional organization.
“It will take all of us in the office and community to make positive changes and enhance the services we provide,” he wrote.
