Carl Daniel Wimmer (born June 30, 1975) is a

Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to its ...

politician who served as a member of the

Utah House of Representatives The Utah House of Representatives is the lower house of the Utah State Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Utah. The House is composed of 75 representatives elected from single member constituent districts. Each district con ...

from 2007-2012 before resigning to run for the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together the ...

Early life, education, and law enforcement career

Wimmer was born in 1975 in

Salt Lake, Utah Salt Lake City (often shortened to Salt Lake and abbreviated as SLC) is the capital and most populous city of Utah, United States. It is the seat of Salt Lake County, the most populous county in Utah. With a population of 200,133 in 2020, th ...

. He was raised in

West Valley, Utah West Valley City is a city in Salt Lake County and a suburb of Salt Lake City in the U.S. state of Utah. The population was 140,230 at the 2020 census, making it the second-largest city in Utah. The city incorporated in 1980 from a large, quic ...

. He attended Utah Peace Officer Standards and Training and

Salt Lake Community College Salt Lake Community College (SLCC) is a Public college, public community college in Salt Lake County, Utah. It is the state's largest two-year college with the most diverse student body. It serves more than 60,000 students on 10 campuses as wel ...

, and has a M.S in religious and theological studies, having graduated summa cum laude from Liberty University. He began his career in law enforcement in 1997, at the Granite School Police department then later transferred to South Jordan police and eventually West Valley City Police Department. Later working and retiring from police work in Gunnison City Utah. He is a member of the

American Center for Law and Justice The American Center for Law & Justice (ACLJ) is a politically conservative, Christian-based legal organization in the United States. It is headquartered in Washington, D.C., and associated with Regent University School of Law in Virginia Beach, ...

and a lifetime member of the

National Rifle Association The National Rifle Association of America (NRA) is a gun rights advocacy group based in the United States. Founded in 1871 to advance rifle marksmanship, the modern NRA has become a prominent gun rights lobbying organization while cont ...

(NRA). He was awarded a Police Star in 2006, South Jordan Officer of the Year in 2001, and the Outstanding Service Award in 2004. Along with owning a small landscaping company he also was a world champion power lifter.

Utah House of Representatives

Elections

In 2006, he ran for Utah's Herriman-based 52nd House District, vacated by incumbent Republican State Representative Dave Hogue, who ran for the

Utah Senate The Utah State Senate is the upper house of the Utah State Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Utah. The Utah Senate is composed of 29 elected members representing an equal number of senate districts. Each senate district is ...

. He won the primary with 57% of the vote, and the general election with 66% of the vote. He won re-election in 2008 with 65% and in 2010 with 79%.

Tenure

In the state legislature, Wimmer introduced the Sudden Cardiac Arrest Survival Act, which was signed into law in 2009. The bill disbanded the statewide automatic external defibrillator (AED) database, replacing it with systems operated by local emergency medical dispatch centers, and amended civil liability immunity provisions pertaining to AEDs. In 2010, Wimmer introduced legislation prohibiting a state agency or department from implementing federal health care reform passed by Congress after March 1, 2010, without the state legislature's authorization. He was the first legislator in the nation to introduce a state constitutional amendment mandating that

union Union commonly refers to: * Trade union, an organization of workers * Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets Union may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Union (band), an American rock group ** ''Un ...

organizing Organizing or organized may refer to: * Organizing (management), a process of coordinating task goals and activities to resources * Community organizing, in which communities come together to act in their shared self-interest * Professional org ...

be done by

secret ballot The secret ballot, also known as the Australian ballot, is a voting method in which a voter's identity in an election or a referendum is anonymous. This forestalls attempts to influence the voter by intimidation, blackmailing, and potential v ...

, as a direct response to federal

card check Card check, also called majority sign-up, is a method for employees to organize into a labor union in which a majority of employees in a bargaining unit sign authorization forms, or "cards", stating they wish to be represented by the union. Since ...

legislation. He got an A+ from the NRA and lead the movement to defeat the ban on legally

concealed weapons Concealed carry, or carrying a concealed weapon (CCW), is the practice of carrying a weapon (usually a sidearm such as a handgun), either in proximity to or on one's person or in public places in a manner that hides or conceals the weapon's pr ...

at the

University of Utah The University of Utah (U of U, UofU, or simply The U) is a public research university in Salt Lake City, Utah. It is the flagship institution of the Utah System of Higher Education. The university was established in 1850 as the University of D ...

. He also sponsored legislation to increase penalties for Utahns convicted of

drive-by shooting A drive-by shooting is a type of assault that usually involves the perpetrator(s) firing a weapon from within a motor vehicle and then fleeing. Drive-by shootings allow the perpetrator(s) to quickly strike their target and flee the scene before ...

s by requiring that such crimes be prosecuted as

aggravated assault An assault is the act of committing physical harm or unwanted physical contact upon a person or, in some specific legal definitions, a threat or attempt to commit such an action. It is both a crime and a tort and, therefore, may result in cri ...

and allowing

prosecutors A prosecutor is a legal representative of the prosecution in states with either the common law adversarial system or the civil law inquisitorial system. The prosecution is the legal party responsible for presenting the case in a criminal tria ...

to simultaneously pursue

felony A felony is traditionally considered a crime of high seriousness, whereas a misdemeanor is regarded as less serious. The term "felony" originated from English common law (from the French medieval word "félonie") to describe an offense that res ...

charges of illegally discharging a firearm. Wimmer lead the fight in Utah against abortion, introducing several bills relating to

abortion Abortion is the termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. An abortion that occurs without intervention is known as a miscarriage or "spontaneous abortion"; these occur in approximately 30% to 40% of pregn ...

, including legislation protecting doctors and hospitals who refuse to perform abortion on religious grounds, blocking a provision in the

Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act The Affordable Care Act (ACA), formally known as the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and colloquially known as Obamacare, is a landmark U.S. federal statute enacted by the 111th United States Congress and signed into law by Pres ...

would allow state health insurance exchanges to provide coverage for abortions, and requiring clinics that provide abortion services to apply for a license and be subject to a biannual inspection. Wimmer supports repealing the Sixteenth Amendment.

Committee assignments

*Government Operations and Political Subdivisions Interim Committee *House Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice Committee *House Revenue and Taxation Committee *House Rules Committee *Revenue and Taxation Interim Committee **Infrastructure and General Government Appropriations Subcommittee

Other political activities

He is a co-founder of the state sovereignty group, The

Patrick Henry Patrick Henry (May 29, 1736June 6, 1799) was an American attorney, planter, politician and orator known for declaring to the Second Virginia Convention (1775): " Give me liberty, or give me death!" A Founding Father, he served as the first ...

Caucus, a nationwide coalition of legislators and grassroots activists who are committed to restoring the balance of power between states and the federal government. He is a national board member of Pass the

Balanced Budget Amendment A balanced budget amendment is a constitutional rule requiring that a state cannot spend more than its income. It requires a balance between the projected receipts and expenditures of the government. Balanced-budget provisions have been added ...

. He is also the chairman of the Utah Family Action Council.

2012 congressional election

Wimmer resigned from his Utah house seat in January 2012 to run for the newly created

Utah's 4th congressional district Utah's 4th congressional district is a congressional district created by the state legislature as a result of reapportionment by Congress after the 2010 Census showed population increases in the state relative to other states. Prior to 2010 rea ...

. He lost at the Republican state convention to

Mia Love Mia, MIA, or M.I.A. may refer to: Music Artists * M.I.A. (rapper) (born 1975), English rapper and singer * M.I.A. (band), 1980s punk rock band from Orange County, California * MIA., a German rock/pop band formed in 1997 * Mia (singer) (born 19 ...

. Mia Love lost to incumbent, Jim Matheson.

Pastorship

In 2015 Carl and his wife started a small bible study in their home with only a few initial attendants. Within a year, their living room was filled with many people and they moved to a larger home to accommodate the growing number of attendants. The next year In 2017, Carl felt called to start a church In his home. With the support of many others from sister churches, they began services where upwards of sixty can attend. In early 2021 he was called to work as the pastor fo
First Baptist Church of Duchesne
Carl has been working there ever since.

Personal life

Wimmer is a devout Christian and a former

Mormon Mormons are a religious and cultural group related to Mormonism, the principal branch of the Latter Day Saint movement started by Joseph Smith in upstate New York during the 1820s. After Smith's death in 1844, the movement split into seve ...

. He married his wife, Sherry, in 1998, and they have three children as well as two foster children who both have severe disabilities. They reside in Duchesne Utah.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wimmer, Carl 1975 births American evangelicals American municipal police officers Christians from Utah Converts to evangelical Christianity Former Latter Day Saints Living people Republican Party members of the Utah House of Representatives 21st-century American politicians People from Herriman, Utah