Brian Redd tapped as Salt Lake's next police chief, but will he ease crime concerns?
Mayor Erin Mendenhall presented her office's public safety plan to tackle crime in Salt Lake City in January. The plan specifically included increasing police presence downtown and in high-crime areas.
A month later, Mendenhall recommended a new police chief, Brian Redd, who's served as the Utah Department of Corrections executive director for nearly two years, to implement the plan.
Though crime is the lowest it has been in 16 years, Mendenhall said it doesn't matter what statistics say if people don't feel safe. 'I've learned more than ever in this job that perception is reality and never more so than in public safety.'
'The perception of being safe is real, and it is our job to address that,' she told the Deseret News Editorial Board on Friday afternoon alongside Redd. 'This change in leadership reflects that.'
Mendenhall announced her nomination of Redd last week in a press conference. The Salt Lake City Council will make the deciding vote on Tuesday, and Mendenhall anticipates the council will lean in Redd's favor.
Mendenhall said Friday that the city's government cannot work in isolation to execute her public safety plan.
Key actions of the Public Safety Plan include:
Increase police presence downtown and in high-crime neighborhoods to decrease gun violence and get drugs off the streets.
Increase emergency shelter options to allow more year-round services for the homeless.
Impose higher prosecution for 'High Utilizers' of the legal system.
Expand treatment for mental health, behavioral health and substance use.
Invest in housing to create options for homeless people following their time in shelter services.
It is 'the most clear prescription for solutions across the spectrum of services for the people most in need and who are creating the most negative impact in the city,' she said, adding that Redd, 'brings trusted relationships across this system and a proven record of positive transformation in departments that he has led.'
Rep. Matthew Gwynn, R-Farr West, agreed, calling Mendenhall's nomination of Redd a 'phenomenal pick.'
'Brian is a change agent and will make surmountable strides in improving morale, thus creating an environment in which police officers will feel able and willing to proactively police Salt Lake City and respond to calls for service in a manner prescriptive to the individual calls themselves,' he told the Deseret News, adding that he hopes Mendenhall will give Redd the 'capacity and discretion to make decisions that will allow for the SLCPD to reach their full potential.'
Redd told the Deseret News that the first thing he would do in his new role was listen to his officers' concerns.
'I said this all the time in the Department of Corrections, and it's true: How can we at the top make good decisions if we're not talking to the people on the ground and listening to them?'
'That's my commitment to the officers, (which) is to listen and to try to implement the things that they are seeing out on the street and providing that support.'
Promising to be a boots-on-the-ground kind of leader, Redd has spent much of his professional career in that capacity. 'I did that in the Department of Corrections. I worked the graveyard shift alongside the officers and made it a point to engage with all levels of the organization, and I did the same in the Department of Public Safety,' he said. 'I will be with the officers out in the field.'
Both he and Mendenhall said the SLCPD would not enforce federal immigration laws unless absolutely necessary.
'There needs to be trust in those communities with the police because a lot of times what happens is those who are undocumented are victimized, many times, by their own community,' Redd said. 'We need to make sure that they feel comfortable to report crime to the police.'
'The balance that I would have to strike is, do we need to have police officers in the area in case there's a problem? But I don't want the perception that we're involved in federal immigration enforcement. That is not our role.'
Mendenhall mentioned that since the city receives grants from the Department of Justice, it remains in compliance with federal requirements and respects their actions, but local law enforcement 'was never designed to do immigration enforcement (and) doesn't have any capacity in the systems to even do those kinds of checks and doesn't want to on top of everything else that our local policing is handling.'
'We receive federal dollars, and we make sure that we're in compliance. But what's happening right now is destabilizing and ambiguous.'
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'The first thing I often say to parents is listen to your young people, be prepared to listen,' said Craig Haslop, a senior lecturer at University of Liverpool who has done research on the manosphere. Research shows that young boys and men are struggling now more than ever before. According to The New York Times, girls now outperform boys in reading tests and achieve higher GPAs at school, while boys are 'more likely to be suspended.' Girls are also more likely to graduate from high school than boys and 'outnumber men in college enrollment.' As boys transition into adulthood, they're delaying important and traditional milestones. This trend is present among young women, too, but young men typically feel it more acutely. According to The New York Times, 19% of men between 25 and 34 live with their parents, in comparison to 13% of women. Men are also slightly more likely to be single — 39% of men are single compared to 36% of women, Pew Research Center found in 2021. 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Ukraine's drone strike on Russia spurs global military rethink, raises U.S. preparedness concerns
Ukraine's drone attack on Russia last weekend was a technological and intelligence game changer. It will reshape not only how the United States bolsters its military, but how the entire world does — allies and adversaries alike. While defense specialists examined the feat in the days since the attack and Ukraine celebrated its success, the question remains: How prepared is the U.S. to use and fend off this emerging tech in warfare? Not well enough, former Utah Rep. Chris Stewart told the Deseret News. Stewart spent 14 years as a pilot in the Air Force and served on the permanent Select Committee on Intelligence while he was in the House of Representatives. He argued that President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's attack, which took more than a year and a half to plan, was 'brilliantly planned' and 'brilliantly executed.' It was a 'dramatic event' that will reshape military thinking globally, Stewart said. On June 1, more than 100 Ukrainian drones targeted military airfields and warplanes in Russia that held equipment used in the more than three-year war. Zelenskyy shared a thread online celebrating his military's success in the mission, nicknamed 'Spider Web.' The attack was unique because it demonstrated Ukraine's ability to conduct a successful mission without intelligence assistance, it struck deep into Russian territory, destroyed billions of dollars of Russian equipment and came at a very low cost to Ukraine. The attack consisted of 117 unmanned drones, each with a drone operator. Drones were smuggled into Russia and placed in wooden containers that had remote-controlled lids. The drones then 'took off to strike their targets,' which were at four different Russian airfields, Ukraine's Security Service said. Ukraine said 41 Russian aircraft were hit by their drones, dealing Russia a blow of an estimated $7 billion. 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Stewart noted that the conflict between Russia and Ukraine has been interesting to watch because, in some ways, they are fighting a World War I-style war through trench warfare, but the use of unmanned drones in the battlefield has escalated fighting to World War III-level combat. The drones used by Ukraine aren't 'sophisticated weapons' by any means, Stewart pointed out. They aren't much different than drones seen flying in the park on weekends. However, if they're deployed strategically, they can cause 'enormous damage,' as seen by Russia. 'Last Friday, could you have imagined what happened in Russia over the weekend? And the truth is is no one did. And that's just one example of, we don't know really how this is going to change and be implemented and we're probably not nearly as prepared as we should be,' Stewart said. He also highlighted how Russia and Ukraine have 'leapfrogged' one another throughout the war. If Russia develops a drone with a new capability, Ukraine will develop a superior one weeks later, and so on. The technology itself is rapidly evolving in the war, Stewart said. 'Going back three years, if you had talked about how will drones affect the war in Ukraine, everyone would have shrugged their shoulders and said, 'Well, I'm not sure,' or they would have said, 'Well, probably not a lot,'' he said. 'And the answer to that question is, it impacted it greatly.' During a briefing on Tuesday, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Ukraine's drone attack 'absolutely does' raise questions about the United States' security. She pointed to Trump's 'big, beautiful bill' and the expansion of defense funding to bolster the U.S. military as it examines how to respond to the emergence of drone usage. 'The president has a full understanding, I can tell you because I've spoken to him about it, about the future of warfare and how drones are a big part of that, and I will not get ahead of our policy team, but I think you can expect to see some executive action on that front in the very near future,' she said. Evelyn Farkas, a former U.S. deputy assistant secretary of defense, said she believes the United States doesn't have the capability to protect against swarms of drones, should an adversary launch an attack. It's something the Department of Defense would need to look at, both domestically and at its overseas bases, she said. But bolstering U.S. military operations would need to start with production. Most drones are being produced overseas, including by U.S. adversaries like China. 'Now that they've used them to strategic effect, it will be even more urgent for the United States to improve its drone capability and to invest in drones,' Farkas, who is the executive director of the McCain Institute, said. The attack over the weekend proved that while drone warfare is not entirely a new operational tactic, the strategy behind using them changed the game. Stewart argued the attack also proved there are two major issues facing the U.S. as it stands on the sidelines of the current war: drone defense and implementation plans need to be drafted, and the supply chain needs to be less dependent on China. China, Stewart noted, has also been successful in purchasing land near U.S. military installations globally. Commanders have likely spent the last several days reviewing how to protect assets after seeing Ukraine launch drones into Russian bases at a very close range, he said. 'They weren't really particularly worried about the aircraft sitting out on their tarmac, and it turned out they should have been, right?' he said of the Russian military, later adding, 'I think people are looking at that differently now than they were.' The U.S. military has said it must invest in drones, commonly called unmanned aircraft systems or UAS. Secretary of the Army Dan Driscoll said in a post online that modernization is critical to U.S. national security. 'Investing in UAS isn't optional — it's essential for battlefield dominance, enhancing precision and protecting Soldiers,' he said. Air Force Gen. David Allvin highlighted the need for technological advancement and investment, pointing to Ukraine's attack. 'In today's environment not every asset must be exquisite/expensive. Look what Ukraine just did,' he said in a post online. 'We can't afford to walk by assets like this that generate lethal effects.' Hoover Institution fellow Jacquelyn Schneider has long argued that the U.S. needs to invest in low-cost technology to advance its military. In a 2023 op-ed, she expanded on her research and argued that the U.S. military has ended up in a paradox. It chased emerging technology that made weapons so expensive that upgrading them would be difficult. It left the Pentagon with a stockpile that was 'neither good enough nor large enough' for its plans, Schneider argued. 'The United States also underprioritized technology that would rein in the cost of logistics, maintenance, and replenishment, opting instead for high-tech weaponry patched together with fragile and outdated software,' she wrote. Schneider said the U.S. needs to 'urgently' prioritize technology that would cut warfare costs and admit it cannot replace all of its systems. High-cost technology should be complemented with cheaper options, she said. 'If the United States hopes to persevere against Russia in the short term and China in the long term, it must consider the economic impact of technology even as it pursues technological advantage,' Schneider wrote. Farkas agreed. The United States has an undeniable issue by having 'very expensive systems that are now vulnerable to foreign drones,' she said. War is a 'great accelerator,' Stewart said of technological advancements. It just depends on if the U.S. military will use it properly, he argued. 'The problem on the defense spending side is, we're just not spending the money we should. The bigger problem is, are we spending it right?' he questioned. 'It doesn't do us much good to buy $50 million Predator drones when we know now that a $500 plastic drone can do nearly the same thing.' Stewart said one of his largest concerns after Ukraine's attack is how the U.S. will respond. It's a pressing issue for the industry and the Pentagon as it grapples with rapidly evolving technology and the price tag of modern warfare. 'Will we spend it in the right way and are we keeping up with technology?' he asked, saying he hopes the administration is prompted to ask those questions after Ukraine's attack.
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Two inmates charged for allegedly stabbing ‘rival gang member' at Utah State Prison
Charges are allegations only. All arrested persons are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. SALT LAKE CITY () — Two inmates at the Utah State Correctional Facility have been charged with aggravated assault after allegedly stabbing who they say was a rival gang member. The victim was hospitalized for his serious injuries. Michael Thomas Webb, 20, has been charged with aggravated assault with injury by a prisoner, possessing a weapon as an offender, riot causing substantial or serious bodily injury, criminal conspiracy, and prohibited dangerous weapon conduct. Four masked men allegedly rob Ogden man after woman leads them to residence, charges say Efrain Castillo, 43, was charged with aggravated assault with injury by a prisoner, riot causing substantial or serious bodily injury, and criminal conspiracy. According to documents, a Utah Department of Corrections officer at the Utah State Correctional Facility in Salt Lake County responded to an emergency call from an inmate on May 7, 2025. When he arrived at the cell, he found the victim on his bunk with blood on his face and bleeding heavily. The officer said he observed blood on the floor, walls, and mattress. The victim was seen by the medical care team, and they found eight stab wounds in his back. He had to be hospitalized and had 'significant internal injuries and temporary loss of respiratory function.' Surveillance footage from the cell showed the victim getting struck with fists and then being 'backed into' his cell by Castillo and Webb. Webb followed the victim into the cell, with Castillo following behind. At this point, Webb allegedly withdrew a weapon from his waistband and made 'eight distinct stab motions' to the victim's back while Castillo restrained him. Utah man pleads guilty to attempting to hire hitman while behind bars in 2020 According to documents, surveillance footage then showed Webb exiting the cell and concealing the weapon in his waistband again. Blood can be seen on his right hand. Castillo and Webb are members of a gang that is 'rivals' with the victim's gang affiliation, according to documents. During an interview about the incident, Webb allegedly told police, 'I just asked him a question and after that it was that … He said he was a [member of a rival gang] and I told him who I was.' As inmates, Castillo and Webb are already incarcerated at the Utah State Correctional Facility. Ram kills the $40K truck, brings back the HEMI Assassin dancers, existential nuns, and comedy that cuts deep Two inmates charged for allegedly stabbing 'rival gang member' at Utah State Prison FBI offers $5,000 reward for information on Montana teen missing for 8 months Pride Festival: Here are the street closures happening in Salt Lake City Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
