Derek Coats
Board Associate, EVAWI, Assistant Chief of Training, Investigator (Ret.), Utah Department of Public Safety
Derek Coats began his career as a Salt Lake City Police Officer in 1994, moving to the Department of Public Safety, focusing on the Sexual Assault Kit Initiative (SAKI), eventually becoming a senior law enforcement specialist in the Justice Practice Area at RTI International, continuing a national focus onf SAKI . He now serves as the Assistant Chief with the Utah Department of Corrections Training Division, where he oversees a team that provides statewide training for new hires and annual in-service, including certified and professional staff. He continues to be a part of the quality assurance for assessments related to offender risk, need, and responsivity to treatment, including gender-specific needs. He participates in reviewing and implementing new technology to improve staff development, training, and job-related needs.
Coats has worked with FBI Behavioral Analysis Unit (BAU) profilers and the Utah Attorney General to develop behaviorally based subject-interview training, and has collaborated with researchers and practitioners to develop assessments and guidance documents supporting sustainability in sexual assault response programs. He has led workshops assessing needs at grant sites, trained detectives in trauma-informed, victim-centered, and suspect-focused investigations, and serves on the Utah Cold Case Review Board, which recommends action on unsolved homicides, missing and unidentified persons, and violent sexual assault cases.
Coats joined the Board of Directors for End Violence Against Women International (EVAWI) as an Associate in 2026.