
Salt Lake City mayor announces her pick for police chief
About a week after firing long-time Salt Lake City police chief Mike Brown, Mayor Erin Mendenhall on Thursday announced Brian Redd, the executive director of the Utah Department of Corrections, as her pick to replace him.
Why it matters: Redd's hiring, pending city council approval, would mark a new chapter for the Salt Lake City Police Department, which has come under pressure from GOP state leaders for its "ineffectiveness" in handling the homelessness crisis in Utah's capital city.
Catch up quick: A Republican lawmaker last week introduced a bill that would force the city to enter into an agreement with the state to curb homelessness and drug crimes. If the agreement isn't reached, the state could withhold funding from the city, under the bill.
Yes, but: Mendenhall told reporters the change of the guard was not related to the state lawmakers' pursuit of the legislation.
"They're going to do whatever they want to do, and it has nothing to do with my decision here," she said
Flashback: Brown, who joined the police force in 1991, has led the department for the better part of a decade. His last day is Feb. 28.
What they're saying:"Salt Lake City's police department today is strong in both our staffing and our public safety statistics, but we are also at an inflection point," Mendenhall told reporters Thursday at the Salt Lake City and County Building, adding that the city is facing criminal activities by drug cartels and "complex challenges" around homelessness.
Zoom in: Redd, in 2023, was appointed by Gov. Spencer Cox to oversee two prisons, six community correctional centers and five adult probation and patrol districts.
What's next: The council is set to consider Mendenhall's recommendation on March 4.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Boston Globe
14 minutes ago
- Boston Globe
New Hampshire extends ‘education freedom account' eligibility to all students, regardless of income
Get N.H. Morning Report A weekday newsletter delivering the N.H. news you need to know right to your inbox. Enter Email Sign Up With this policy change, state-level spending on EFAs is projected to climb from Advertisement Ayotte said these numbers represent a fiscally responsible approach to a core commitment. 'As a mom, I can't think of anything more important than making sure that every child in this state has the opportunity to reach his or her full potential in the setting that works best for them in terms of education, and that's really what this bill does,' she said. Advertisement Ayotte was joined at a bill-signing ceremony by outgoing Education Commissioner Frank Edelblut, lawmakers who supported the EFA expansion, and a cadre of children. The bill's prime sponsor, Republican Senator Victoria L. Sullivan of Manchester, said the legislation will help Although other states in New England have school-choice programs, New Hampshire's policies already ranked highest in the region in terms of ' With its latest move, New Hampshire has 'set a new benchmark for what educational freedom should look like,' Robert Enlow, president and CEO of Until now, the EFA program had allowed those earning up to 350 percent of the federal poverty level (about $112,500 for a family of four) to take money the state would have contributed toward the cost of their public education and instead spend it on private school or certain other educational expenses. Since the state contributes The actual financial impacts will depend in large part on which newly eligible students opt to participate. A student who uses EFA money to transfer from a public charter school to a private school, for example, could save the state about $5,100 per year, but a student who uses the money to continue attending a private school where they were already enrolled could cost the state an additional $4,400 per year, according to legislation's fiscal impact statement. Advertisement In 2021, when lawmakers first considered establishing the EFA program, the New Hampshire Department of Education estimated that What's more, critics have noted that a public school's overhead costs do not necessarily decrease at a rate proportional to the number of local students who opt to use EFA money elsewhere. Megan Tuttle, president of National Education Association in New Hampshire, said the EFA expansion 'will exacerbate the already inequitable public education funding system in New Hampshire.' Deb Howes, president of American Federation of Teachers in New Hampshire, said the state is 'underfunding' public schools, so it's 'appalling' that the EFA expansion will extend subsidies to families who can already afford to pay for the education of their choosing. 'That is the one priority they're going to fund in the budget, while Democratic Representative David Luneau of Hopkinton said spending on the EFA program could balloon more than the budgeters have projected. 'We're potentially looking at north of $100 million once this program is fully phased in over the next few years,' he said, calling the program 'an unaccountable and Advertisement The legislation that Ayotte signed into law includes a circuit-breaker provision to limit how rapidly the EFA program can expand. No more than 10,000 students will be allowed to participate for the 2025-2026 school year. If more than 9,000 students apply, then the cap will increase to 12,500 students in the following school year. (Whenever the number of EFA applicants exceeds 90 percent of the maximum, the cap will increase by 25 percent in the following school year.) Once the number of applications remains below the cap for two consecutive school years, the cap will disappear. There are currently about The state's EFA program is administered by the Steven Porter can be reached at


Newsweek
29 minutes ago
- Newsweek
Republican Turns on Trump's Deportation Plan: 'Inhumane'
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. A Florida Republican has broken from the ranks to slam President Donald Trump's mass deportation plans as "inhumane." State Senator Ileana Garcia, a co-founder of the pro-Trump group Latinas for Trump, took to social media to voice her opposition, directly criticizing both the policy and Stephen Miller, the architect behind the Trump administration's hardline immigration measures. "This is not what we voted for," Garcia wrote in a post on X."I have always supported Trump, through thick and thin. However, this is unacceptable and inhumane." Florida State Sen. Ileana Garcia is seen during a hearing at the Florida State Capitol Jan. 11, 2024. Florida State Sen. Ileana Garcia is seen during a hearing at the Florida State Capitol Jan. 11, 2024. Francis Chung/POLITICO via AP Images Why It Matters The remarks come as the president's immigration agenda sows fear into immigrant communities in South Florida. Hundreds of thousands of Cuban and Venezuelan immigrants have been impacted by the administration's decision to revoke Temporary Protected Status (TPS). These communities largely backed Trump in the November election, contributing to his victory in Miami-Dade County. President Donald Trump vowed that his administration would remove millions of individuals living in the U.S. without legal status. The White House has said it will go after the "worst of the worst" and said anyone living in the country illegally is a "criminal." His hard-line agenda has saw ramped up raids, halted asylum processing for undocumented migrants, and expanded the authority of ICE to detain those in the country unlawfully. What To Know Garcia said: "I understand the importance of deporting criminal aliens, but what we are witnessing are arbitrary measures to hunt down people who are complying with their immigration hearings—in many cases, with credible fear of persecution claims—all driven by a Miller-like desire to satisfy a self-fabricated deportation goal." Garcia has been a stringer Trump supporter since he launched his political career in 2016. She founded Latinas for Trump to rally support among Hispanic women. The Republican also served as a spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security during Trump's first tenure in the White House. It comes after White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller said that the administration is looking to hit 3,000 ICE arrests per day. Meanwhile, Republican Congresswoman María Elvira Salazar also appeared to shift her stance amid Trump's crackdown. She expressed unease with the policy, saying the "uncertainty" in her community has left her "heartbroken." "Any illegal alien who is deported from the United States receives due process, and if they have pending asylum claims, they are adjudicated by USCIS prior to any removal," White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson told Newsweek. What People Are Saying White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson told Newsweek: "President Trump was the first Republican Presidential candidate in nearly 40 years to win Miami-Dade county, and polling ahead of the election showed massive support among Hispanic voters for deportations. President Trump is fulfilling his promise to deport illegal aliens and the American people are grateful." State Senator Ileana Garcia wrote in a post on X: "This undermines the sense of fairness and justice that the American people value." Rep. María Elvira Salazar said in a statement on X: "I am fully aware, and heartbroken, about the uncertainty now gripping Florida's 27th District because of the recent immigration actions of the administration." What Happens Next Miami Republicans in Washington, D.C., are set to meet with Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem. For now, Garcia's public break with Trump highlights a growing tension within the GOP—between hardline immigration enforcement and the political realities of a state where immigrant voters play a crucial role.


The Hill
30 minutes ago
- The Hill
Hawley bill would raise minimum wage to $15
Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) wants to double the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour, with legislation filed Tuesday to increase the rate adopted nearly two decades ago. 'For decades, working Americans have seen their wages flatline,' Hawley said in a statement to The Hill. 'One major culprit of this is the failure of the federal minimum wage to keep up with the economic reality facing hard-working Americans every day.' The increase would take effect next year, when Hawley's home state hikes its rate to the same level. Most states, like Missouri, have set minimum hourly wage levels above the $7.25 federal rate, and nearly a dozen of them will have minimum rates at or above $15 an hour after increases take effect this year. Five states — Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina and Tennessee — have never set their own rates, and three — Georgia, Oklahoma and Wyoming — have state minimums below $7.25 per hour. Those eight states all default to the federal rate. The Hawley legislation, cosponsored by Sen. Peter Welch (D-Vt.), also would set automatic increases to match inflation over time to prevent future standstills like the nation has faced since the last federal hike in 2009. Minimum wage hikes have historically faced pushback from some business advocacy groups. 'This proposal would more than double the minimum wage and slash over 800,000 jobs,' Rebekah Paxton, research director at the Employment Policies Institute, said in a statement on Hawley's latest push. 'An overwhelming majority of economists agree that drastic minimum wage hikes cut employment, limit opportunities for workers and shutter businesses.' 'Hawley's proposal would take similar failed policies like California's and export them nationwide,' she added. It's unclear whether the GOP-controlled Senate and House will take up the bipartisan legislation or what the timeline could look like as lawmakers try to hash out President Trump's priority legislation. The White House declined to comment on Hawley's proposed minimum wage increase. A spokesperson told The Hill in an email that they would not 'get ahead of the President on pending legislation.' Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent rejected the idea of increasing the minimum wage earlier this year. But Trump acknowledged in a 'Meet the Press' interview a month before the start of his second presidency that the current minimum wage is 'very low' but said he didn't want to raise it to a level that would ultimately force businesses to shutter. 'There is a level at which you could do it, absolutely,' the then-president elect told host Kristen Welker. 'I would consider it.' Trump added that the debate is 'very complicated' because the cost of living varies among states. 'It would be nice to have just a minimum wage for the whole country, but it wouldn't work because you have places where it's very inexpensive to live,' he said.