Legally Speaking

Utah Attorney General’s Office
Legally Speaking

Welcome to Legally Speaking, a podcast for those who want quick and summarized information on important issues and cases the state is handling. Our format is meant to be easier to understand than a court document or technical argument. As Utah’s largest public law firm, we will address topics from a legal point of view— with information you won’t get anywhere else.

  1. 12/26/2024

    Ryan Goodrich Title Fraud Case

    Ryan Goodrich was a trusted title agent who became a thief. The Utah Attorney General’s Office prosecuted the case and sought justice for the victims in October. For years, Goodrich ran Synergy Title in Syracuse and, outwardly, lived an ideal life. In truth, Goodrich stole more than $9 million from real estate buyers, sellers and lenders over two years. And, behind the scenes, Goodrich kept the money he was supposed to pay clients for selling their homes. He didn’t complete financial transactions; he kept the money. He tried to hide it but our Assistant Attorney General prosecuting the case says his scheme buried him in evidence. Wayne Jones of our Mortgage and Financial Fraud Division joins us on this Legally Speaking podcast to share more.

    17 min

  2. 11/26/2024

    ICAC Cases On the Rise: A Dark Trend

    Utah’s Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force is busier than ever, with a steadily rising number of cases coming to our office from the National Institute for Missing and Exploited Children and other sources. In this edition of Legally Speaking, we look at the reasons why there are more cases of child sexual abuse material, more children exploited, and more children harmed by adult contact than ever before in this state. Parents need to know what’s happening and what the trends are in our community, even if it’s uncomfortable to hear. The Utah AG’s ICAC Commander—Sete Aulai—has the facts and an important update for us on this episode.

    15 min

  3. 11/12/2024

    Identifying Child Sex Abuse Material

    Child Sex Abuse Material or CSAM is a legal definition for what we used to refer to as ‘child pornography.’ It is an important distinction that has been codified into Utah State Law, for very good reasons. As we speak to our Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, the CSAM distinction is important moving forward. We’ll examine why in this edition of Legally Speaking as we interview Sete Aulai, Commander of the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.

    10 min

  4. 10/24/2024

    PFAS Forever Chemicals Update

    Our focus on 'Forever Chemicals’ (also known as PFAS) is critical and ongoing because of the health risks that have impacted many people, and for legal cases that have been slow to unfold. PFAS is the substance that makes Teflon non-stick, fire-retardant chemical foam so effective, and degreasing and stain resistant treatments improve clothing and more. Contamination in the human body is permanent—and that’s where the Attorney General’s Office comes in! Learn more about how we've teamed up with other states and the federal government to seek legal remedies for this pollutant. On this edition of Legally Speaking, we speak to Health and Environment Division Director Craig Anderson to clarify this issue.

    21 min

  5. 10/17/2024

    Kennecott's Case: Investigating Copper Theft in Utah

    Copper theft is becoming more common and is a costly loss on construction sites, EV recharging stations, utility work sites, among others. The take offers quick cash for thieves. The Utah Attorney General’s Office is currently prosecuting a unique case in Salt Lake County, where sheriff’s detectives arrested four men—all connected to either stealing copper from Kennecott or buying the stolen property so they could resell it for profit. It's also a heavy case: The copper items weigh more than ten thousand pounds and are valued at $147 thousand. Big money is our focus today, and on crimes like this. So who better to ask than our detectives who see this kind of thing in our Crimes Against Statewide Economy (CASE) unit everyday? Legally Speaking talks to CASE Commander James Russell and State Bureau of Investigation Detective Megan Johnson about this costly trend.

    15 min

  6. 09/27/2024

    Protecting Utahns Against Real Estate Workshop Scam

    Real Estate Workshop (REW), a group that promised to teach people how to make it big in real estate, may have taught potential students a more painful lesson about consumer awareness. REW turned out to be a huge scam that upsold people to the point of depleting bank accounts, retirement savings, and causing debt. A legal case and settlement resulted in a $42.5 million fine being imposed, with $2.8 million going toward restitution. REW offered ‘free’ seminars but in reality, the training sign up was up-sold and never delivered. That’s when our White-Collar Crime Attorneys and the Division of Consumer Services got involved. Their work resulted in this outcome. Assistant Attorney General Peishen Zhou and Assistant Director of Consumer Protection Blake Young both explained the details of the complaint and settlement. For more information, click here.

    15 min

  7. 09/18/2024

    Public Lands Lawsuit Clarified

    The State of Utah has filed a significant lawsuit challenging federal ownership of 18.5 acres of land within its borders. Today, the Legally Speaking guest is Solicitor General Stan Purser. Mr. Purser explains why the lawsuit goes directly to the Supreme Court, where the state will argue the federal government's control of the land is unconstitutional. At a news conference, Attorney General Reyes pointed out that Utah isn't allowed to watch over more than two-thirds of its own territory because it’s controlled by people who don’t live in Utah and who aren’t accountable or responsive to its citizens. It also isn’t allowed to collect taxes on the land. It’s a hot-button issue with conservationists, but important to state leaders, who have been fighting this issue for decades. Utah’s national parks and monuments are NOT part of this lawsuit. Click on this link for valuable information about the lawsuit and perspective on the volume of land involved.

    16 min

  8. 09/05/2024

    Looking Back: 2015 Gold King Mine Settlement

    Utah recently received the final settlement payment from the federal government in the 2015 Gold King Mine lawsuit. You may recall the dramatic pictures of bright yellow and orange water flowing down Colorado’s Animas and San Juan Rivers into Utah and Lake Powell. That water was at least 3 million gallons of mine tailings full of arsenic and heavy metals from the Bonita Mine. Utah sued the EPA, which caused the spill, and now the legal case is complete. Even though the blowout was an accident, the EPA admitted responsibility and a settlement came after some hard work by the attorney general’s office. The state received more than $7 million, and the final payment came recently. Meanwhile, the pollution in that water was significant enough that Governor Herbert at the time declared a State of Emergency to preserve the health, safety and welfare of citizens as well as the interests of Utah farms and businesses, which led to the lawsuit. In this edition of Legally Speaking, Craig Anderson, the Director of the Environment and Health Divisions at the Utah Attorney General’s Office shares some details about the case that weren’t available until now.

    16 min
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About

Welcome to Legally Speaking, a podcast for those who want quick and summarized information on important issues and cases the state is handling. Our format is meant to be easier to understand than a court document or technical argument. As Utah’s largest public law firm, we will address topics from a legal point of view— with information you won’t get anywhere else.

Information

  • Creator
    Utah Attorney General’s Office
  • Years Active
    2022 - 2024
  • Episodes
    58
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Copyright 2022 All rights reserved.
  • Show Website
    Legally Speaking

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