Mark L. Shurtleff
Utah Attorney General
Mark L. Shurtleff was re-elected as the Utah Attorney General in November 2008 with a strong 70% of the vote; and is now serving as the first three term attorney general in Utah history. In his first 8 years in office, the number of meth labs in Utah was reduced by 98% and he has talked to thousands of students and parents about the dangers of drugs and led the effort to obtain millions of dollars in funding for education and rehabilitation. His Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force has received national recognition and since Shurtleff has been in office, over 500 internet predators and child pornographers have been arrested and convicted (with a 99% conviction rate.) The number of sex offenders in Utah prisons has increased by more than 50%. In addition, Attorney General Shurtleff has toured the state and helped develop technology to teach parents and children how to be safe online.
Shurtleff set up Utah's AMBER Alert, which became a model for the nation and has received national awards, and he led the development of the first statewide Child Abduction Response Team. He developed the first statewide identity theft database, the Identity Theft Reporting and Information System or IRIS. The website is a one stop resource for victims to file online complaints with law enforcement, clear their credit and learn how to better protect their identities. His office is now working hard to expand IRIS nationwide.
Attorney General Shurtleff was born and raised in Utah, graduating from Brighton High School, Brigham Young University and the University Of Utah College of Law. He is the author of Am I Not a Man? The Dred Scott Story, a historical novel about the man behind the landmark legal case. He served in the U.S. Navy Judge Advocate General (JAG) Corps as an Officer and Attorney, prosecuting hundreds of cases from 1985 to 1990. Shurtleff was a private practice trial lawyer in California from 1990 to 1993. He returned to Utah to serve as an Assistant Attorney General from 1993 to 1997. During that time, Shurtleff was appointed Section Chief for Civil Rights & Corrections and served as the lead attorney for public safety. From 1997 to 1998, he was a Deputy County Attorney for Salt Lake County. He also served as a Small Claims Judge Pro Tem in the Third District Court and a law enforcement and corrections instructor.
Attorney General Shurtleff is a Past Chairman of the Conference of Western Attorneys General (CWAG), and has served several times on the Executive Committee for the National Association of Attorneys General (NAAG). In addition, he serves on the Board of Directors of the America-Israel Friendship League, Fight Crime: Invest in Kids Association and the Washington Legal Foundation. Locally, he serves on the Boards of the Utah Prosecution Council, Commission on Criminal & Juvenile Justice, the Constitutional Defense Council, Governor’s Child & Family Cabinet Council and Utah Citizens Against Pornography.
Mentoring and volunteerism have been a major part of Shurtleff’s life. He has been a Boy Scout leader for 22 years and in March 2007 he was honored with the Silver Beaver Award. He is an anti-drug lecturer in our schools, an At-Risk Youth Mentor, and has coached youth basketball, soccer, volleyball and softball. He is currently the Honorary Chair of the Utah Mentor Network and has personally mentored two elementary school students. He has received numerous awards for protecting children including the 2004 "Champion of Children" Award, the 2005 Utah "Protector of Children" Award, the 2005 "Guardian of the Light" Award, the 2006 Internet Safety Person of the Year by the Boys and Girls Clubs. He has also been honored as the 2006 "Humanitarian of the Year" by the Conference for Community and Justice, and the 2007 “Statesman of the Year” by George Wythe College. In November 2006 he received the highest award given by Mexico to a non-Mexican, The Order of the Aztec Eagle, presented to him by President Vicente Fox.
Most importantly, he and his wife, M’Liss, have been married 27 years and are the parents of five incredible children and two grandchildren.