For the first time, female wardens now lead both of Utah’s state prisons

The Utah State Correctional Facility is pictured from a “free speech zone” set up about two miles from the facility in Salt Lake City on Wednesday, Aug. 7, 2024 as the state prepared to execute death row inmate Taberon Honie just after midnight. (Photo by Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch)

For the first time, Utah’s two state prisons will be led by female wardens. 

The Utah Department of Corrections named Sharon D’Amico as the new warden at Salt Lake City’s correctional facility on Tuesday. D’Amico will become the second woman to lead a state prison, following Kristin Keisel who was selected to be the warden of the Central Utah Correctional Facility in Gunnison in Nov. 2023. 

D’Amico has worked for the Utah Department of Corrections, or UDC, since 1997, starting as a correctional officer at the old state prison in Draper, where she was promoted to case manager. 

In 2022, when the new Utah State Correctional Facility opened in Salt Lake City near the shores of the Great Salt Lake, D’Amico was promoted to deputy warden, where she oversaw internal security, support services and facility operations, according to UDC. 

“Warden D’Amico has been dedicated to uplifting her team, providing them with the resources and guidance necessary for success. In her new role, she aims to prioritize staff development and wellbeing while fostering a culture of empowerment and service, which are all key parts of UDC’s mission, vision, and values,” said Brian Redd, UDC’s executive director. 

There are roughly 3,000 people incarcerated at the Salt Lake prison, which offers things like vocational training, high school and college education, work programs, and treatment for substance use, mental health and sex offenses. 

D’Amico is replacing Bart Mortensen, who was promoted to be the new chief of UDC’s Reentry and Rehabilitation Division.