--- title: "Shawn Rice Howell | KnowJudges" canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/shawn-rice-howell-district-court-judge-utah-fourth-district-court-ut" page_type: "judge_profile" updated: "2026-08-02" --- # Shawn Rice Howell Utah Fourth District Court · District Court Judge ## Profile - Court: Utah Fourth District Court - State: Utah - Role: District Court Judge - Service status: active - Last verified: 2026-07-26 ## Summary Official statewide and applicable court procedural guidance applies to this judge. ## Biography ### Professional career - Utah Fourth District Court judge appointed on July 26, 2024, by Governor Spencer J. Cox, serving Juab, Millard, Utah, and Wasatch counties - Law clerk to Hon. Donald J. Eyre (Fourth District Court) and Commissioner Thomas Patton, specializing in domestic and civil matters - She also held the role of a Utah County Public Defender Associate and was a part-time professor coaching trial advocacy at the J. Reuben Clark Law School at Brigham Young University - Prior to her service as a public defender she was a law clerk to the Honorable Donald J. Eyre of the Fourth District Court and Commissioner Thomas Patton where she specialized in domestic and civil matters. ### Education - J. Reuben Clark Law School at Brigham Young University — J.D. - in Marketing Communications — Brigham Young University — B.A. ### Additional information - Appointed July 26, 2024, by Governor Spencer J. Cox; subject to Utah Senate confirmation. - Before her judicial appointment, Howell was a senior trial attorney and former Chief Counsel of the Utah County Public Defender Association. - Bailiff in the Fourth District after earning the Special Functions Officer designation from the Fred House Corrections Academy. - New Lawyer Mentor for the Utah State Bar. - Judge Howell presides over cases in the Fourth District Court of Utah, covering Juab, Millard, Utah, and Wasatch counties. - Appointed to fill a vacancy created by Judge Robert Lund’s departure. - Prior to her judicial appointment, Judge Howell was a senior trial attorney, having served a term as Chief Counsel, at the Utah County Public Defender Association. - In her own words, Howell believes “confidence in our judiciary is established by the fair and equitable application of the law to the matters before the courts” and commits to administering the law “as written and intended by our Legislature and the Constitution”. ## Before you appear - Read the judge-specific standing order first when one is listed. - Check the docket and case orders for requirements that supersede broader guidance. - Confirm current remote-access and courtroom technology arrangements before the proceeding. ## Courtroom Rules ### electronic media coverage Scope: statewide Utah permits electronic media coverage of public proceedings under statewide UCJA procedures, including proceedings conducted by remote transmission. Evidence excerpt: This rule governs electronic media coverage of proceedings that are open to the public, including proceedings conducted by remote transmission. [UCJA Rule 4-401.01 Electronic media coverage of court proceedings](https://legacy.utcourts.gov/rules/view.php?type=ucja&rule=4-401.01) Source checked: 2026-07-26 ### media request process Scope: statewide Utah requires requests for electronic media coverage to be made through the court's public information office. Evidence excerpt: All requests to provide electronic media coverage shall be made to the court’s public information office. [UCJA Rule 4-401.01 Electronic media coverage of court proceedings](https://legacy.utcourts.gov/rules/view.php?type=ucja&rule=4-401.01) Source checked: 2026-07-26 ### portable electronic devices Scope: statewide Utah permits possession and use of portable electronic devices in courthouses unless limited by UCJA Rule 4-401.02 or by directive of the judge. Evidence excerpt: A person may possess and use a portable electronic device anywhere in a courthouse, except as limited by this rule or directive of the judge. [UCJA Rule 4-401.02 Possession and use of portable electronic devices](https://legacy.utcourts.gov/rules/view.php?type=ucja&rule=4-401.02) Source checked: 2026-07-26 ### recording photography transmission Scope: statewide Utah prohibits recording, photographing, or transmitting images or sound of court proceedings with portable electronic devices unless allowed under the electronic-media rule or another stated exception. Evidence excerpt: A person may not use a portable electronic device to record, photograph, or transmit images or sound of court proceedings, except in accordance with rule 4-401.01 or subsection (2)(D) above. [UCJA Rule 4-401.02 Possession and use of portable electronic devices](https://legacy.utcourts.gov/rules/view.php?type=ucja&rule=4-401.02) Source checked: 2026-07-26 ## Sources - [Official profile](https://www.utcourts.gov/en/courts/other-court-info/judges-bios/district-courts/fourth-district-court/shawn-rice-howell.html) - [Official roster](https://www.utcourts.gov/en/courts/other-court-info/judges-bios/district-courts/fourth-district-court/shawn-rice-howell.html) - [Utah State Courts official judicial roster](https://www.utcourts.gov/en/courts/other-court-info/judges-bios/district-courts/fourth-district-court/shawn-rice-howell.html) - [UCJA Rule 4-401.01 Electronic media coverage of court proceedings](https://legacy.utcourts.gov/rules/view.php?type=ucja&rule=4-401.01) - [UCJA Rule 4-401.02 Possession and use of portable electronic devices](https://legacy.utcourts.gov/rules/view.php?type=ucja&rule=4-401.02) - [JUDGE SHAWN RICE HOWELL](https://www.utcourts.gov/en/courts/other-court-info/judges-bios/district-courts/fourth-district-court/shawn-rice-howell.html) ## JSON-LD ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/shawn-rice-howell-district-court-judge-utah-fourth-district-court-ut", "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/shawn-rice-howell-district-court-judge-utah-fourth-district-court-ut", "name": "Shawn Rice Howell | KnowJudges", "description": "Shawn Rice Howell, Utah Fourth District Court. 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Shared court context only; case-type restrictions, exceptions, later amendments and case orders apply. This is not a personal preference or a complete rules inventory. [Official source](https://legacy.utcourts.gov/rules/view.php?type=ucja&rule=4-401.01). Collected 2026-07-26. - [UCJA Rule 4-401.02 Possession and use of portable electronic devices](https://knowjudges.com/courtroom-rules/national-shared-set-5b4e5d61b330f356e2af7caf) — Scope is limited to the court class in the source claim. Shared court context only; case-type restrictions, exceptions, later amendments and case orders apply. This is not a personal preference or a complete rules inventory. [Official source](https://legacy.utcourts.gov/rules/view.php?type=ucja&rule=4-401.02). Collected 2026-07-26.