LOGAN — A First District Court judge dismissed a lawsuit Tuesday against Cache County Sheriff Chad Jensen that sought the release of an inmate and challenged the county’s legal authority to prosecute criminal cases.
Judge Angela Fonnesbeck tossed the petition, which alleged the inmate was being illegally restrained because Cache County lacks a formal “district attorney.”
“Because the Petitioner’s core legal theory is factually and legally baseless under a plain reading of the Utah Code and Cache County Code, the claim of illegal restraint is frivolous on its face,” Fonnesbeck wrote in her conclusions.
In her ruling, Fonnesbeck noted that both state and county codes directly contradict the petitioner’s “entire argument.” She also cited procedural violations, including the petitioner’s failure to attach the legal process that resulted in the restraint and improperly including legal arguments within the petition itself rather than in a separate memorandum.
Cache County Attorney Dane Murray issued a statement following the dismissal, praising the ruling.
“The court’s ruling brings a swift end to a legal challenge that sought to characterize the detention of a criminal defendant as unlawful based on the claim that the Cache County Attorney’s Office has lacked the legal authority to prosecute crimes going back to January 2025,” Murray wrote.
He also took aim at similar public claims made by Chris Daines, an attorney who recently ran against Murray for the appointed county attorney position. Daines, who is the cousin of Cache County Executive George Daines, posted on Facebook on March 1 that the county was in a “legal crisis” and that the county attorney “cannot legally prosecute criminal cases.”
Without naming him directly, Murray referred to the “frivolous arguments” repeatedly echoed in public forums by a partner at Daines, Thomas, and Smith.
“The frivolous arguments presented in this case … are prejudicial to the administration of justice and serve only to undermine public trust in the Cache County criminal justice system,” Murray said. “This ruling should reassure the public that the Cache County Attorney’s Office possesses clear and legal authority to prosecute crime, which is its core mission.”