An occasional series of short editorials on issues of interest to Utah County residents.

Senators making really bad deal

The bill granting the District of Columbia a voting member of Congress in return for giving Utah a fourth House seat is now before the U.S. Senate, with support from Utah's Senate delegation.

Both of Utah's Republican senators, Bob Bennett and Orrin Hatch, have signed on as co-sponsors. They shouldn't have.

The bill is one that sounds good on the surface, allowing a half-million taxpaying Americans to have real representation in Congress, but it falls apart on constitutional grounds. The Constitution only grants congressional representation to states, not federal districts like the District of Columbia. Voting status should only come through amendment to the Constitution or by granting statehood to D.C, something that seems unlikely.

It is understandable that Utah lawmakers would want to correct the wrong that was done in the 2000 Census, when we lost out on a fourth seat because Utah was not allowed to count 11,000 residents serving LDS missions overseas. But it's not such a serious wrong that we have to run roughshod over the Constitution to fix it.

Hatch and Bennett readily acknowledge the constitutional problems with the bill. Bennett said they should be addressed; but Hatch said he's willing to let the courts sort things out.

It seems odd that Hatch is now willing to trust the courts to bend the Constitution to suit Utah's needs after he has loudly denounced them for being "activists" and "legislating from the bench" in other cases -- the Supreme Court's free speech rulings, for example. It just goes to show the truth of the old adage that a politician never opposes a deal he's in on.

Let jurors hear Kiplyn's name

If lawyers ever wonder why people make jokes about them, they need only look at Scott Williams and his recent motion to keep jurors from hearing Kiplyn Davis's name in court.

Williams is the attorney representing Christopher Neal Jeppson in U.S. District Court, where Jeppson is facing nine perjury counts in Kiplyn's disappearance. Jeppson is accused of lying to investigators when he told them that he, David Rucker Leifson and Timmy Brent Olsen were at Spanish Fork High School's auditorium setting up for a play when Kiplyn disappeared in 1995. Olsen has already been found guilty of perjury and is facing murder charges in Utah's 4th District Court for Kiplyn's death.

But when Jeppson goes on trial, his lawyer does not want the jury to hear Kiplyn's name for fear it will create prejudice against his client. We can't imagine how prosecutors would be able to present their case if they can't mention Kiplyn's name. Jurors would wonder why was Jeppson was being questioned about his whereabouts in 1995 if they can't hear about Kiplyn. It would be like trying to understand "Casablanca" if every reference to Rick and Ilsa were removed from the story. Whether Williams likes it or not, Kiplyn is a vital part of the case and the jurors have to hear about her.

The motion is also a kick in the teeth to Kiplyn's family. After having their daughter missing for 12 years, they are now facing the prospect that she cannot be mentioned in the trial over how her disappearance was covered up.

This story appeared in The Daily Herald on page A6.