Labrador Addresses Idaho Sheriffs’ Association

Dear Friends,

Wednesday night, I had the privilege of delivering the keynote address to the Idaho Sheriffs’ Association at their annual meeting. It was great to look around the room and see so many people committed to the constitutional defense of Idaho’s citizens, county by county.

This was the first time in 20 years (by their recollection) that an Attorney General had spoken to their organization. That was surprising to me, given the interests and common goals we share. But it also lets me know we are on the right track as we rebuild relationships and strengthen the partnerships between our respective offices. 

In the last year since I took office, we have changed our policies to allow our attorneys and investigators to assist local prosecutors and law enforcement in complex or difficult cases, without insisting they relinquish complete control to the Attorney General’s Office. Demanding control isn’t a partnership, and it doesn’t build trust or relationships. Changing this policy still gives law enforcement access to whatever expertise and resources we can offer while still allowing local control, and for newer prosecutors and investigators to gain valuable experience. As I said to the sheriffs, the work we do is far too important to care about who gets the credit.

An example of that important work is our Internet Crimes Against Children Unit (ICAC). When I took office in January 2023, our ICAC Unit had a horrific backlog of 1400 cyber-tips that needed to be investigated and triaged, each one involving a potentially abused or exploited child in Idaho. Thanks to an internal reorganization and prioritization campaign, we devoted additional resources to both clearing the backlog of tips and sending out the cases for investigation. I was proud to tell the sheriffs that our backlog for cyber-tips is now zero, and we are on track to have zero backlog on the cases to be assigned by the end of the year.

We couldn’t have done this without the help of our local law enforcement who have stepped up in defense of exploited and endangered children in Idaho. I’m grateful for their support, and hearing from them last night that our changes are making a positive impact in communities across Idaho is very encouraging. This is the kind of partnership the people of Idaho are counting on, and the partnership they deserve.