Wednesday’s Wasatch County Council agenda includes a draft resolution calling on Wasatch County Sheriff Jared Rigby to resign.
A grand jury indicted the sheriff in September on a second-degree felony count of obstruction of justice, plus making a written false statement, a class B misdemeanor.
Rigby allegedly sought to discredit a political opponent who also is a detective with the Summit County Sheriff’s Office.
Summit County prosecutors accuse Rigby of interfering with the Kouri Richins trial in the process, since his opponent was a potential witness. Rigby has pleaded not guilty.
According to the Wasatch County Council’s draft resolution, the pending charges and media coverage are “hurting the public faith” in the sheriff’s office.
“In no way is this considered retribution. We looked at this from the lens of healing, from both the county side and perhaps [Rigby] personally. We look at this from the lens of presumed innocent until found guilty,” Councilmember Erik Rowland told KPCW. “With that, we felt like this could be a way that would afford him the opportunity to focus on this trial, but at the same time, allow for both the county residents as well as the staff a chance to move forward.”
Rowland said the resolution is the outcome of a recent closed session discussion. He could not comment on the specifics of that discussion.
The council’s decision to call for Rigby’s resignation isn’t final until Wednesday’s vote.
Rigby and his attorney Blake Hamilton didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment Monday afternoon.
The draft resolution states there are practical matters at play too.
It states Rigby’s access to a statewide criminal investigation database has been revoked because of his pending felony charge, and he must be escorted around certain areas of the sheriff’s office building.
The resolution says county staff suggested Rigby work remotely to avoid violating those rules and he refused.
It also says he turned down the county’s offer to pay him the salary and health insurance costs he’d accrue through the end of his term in January.
Wasatch County will have a new sheriff in 2027, no matter what, since Rigby lost the June primary election.
“The timing — we consider that as well as part of this decision — and tried to outline different options based on that timing,” Rowland said. “Again, makes it in some respects both challenging but also perhaps easier. It depends on your frame of view.”
Staff previously told KPCW that the county’s options are limited because Rigby is an independently elected official, not a normal county employee.
