This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

The Utah attorney general's office has been asked to investigate whether Salt Lake County Recorder Gary Ott is being exploited by members of his office staff.

Political activist Jeremy Roberts, who said he's been friends with Ott for 15 years, filed a formal complaint Wednesday seeking an investigation into his suspicion that Ott's senior staff is violating the Abuse, Neglect or Exploitation of a Vulnerable Adult Act by propping up Ott when he is unable to do his job because his cognitive skills apparently are diminishing.

"I am confident Mr. Ott has conducted himself with the utmost integrity, professionalism and decency," said Roberts, of Lehi. "But I fear his current mental and physical health render him vulnerable under Utah law."

"I believe Mr. Ott's senior staff has taken advantage of his health for their own personal financial and employment gain," he added, referring to deputy recorder Julie Dole and Karmen Sanone, Ott's aide and girlfriend.

Daniel Burton, a spokesman for Attorney General Sean Reyes, confirmed receipt of the complaint but would neither confirm nor deny that the office would conduct an investigation.

Dole released a statement Tuesday evening, "written in collaboration and approved by Mr. Ott," that said he was astounded by Roberts' claim because the "last extended interaction was almost two years ago and all interactions with Mr. Roberts have been in a professional or political realm, not personal."

The statement quoted Ott as saying "I don't know why he [Mr. Roberts] is doing this. I haven't see him in a long time."

Dole's statement added that the audit found the recorder's office was fulfilling all "statutory duties and obligations to the public," contrary to Roberts' insinuations.

Roberts said he chose to file this complaint because state law precludes county officials from removing Ott, 64, from the elected office he's scheduled to hold until 2020.

Despite concerns about his mental health, epitomized by a bizarre incident in Tooele County in late January, when an incoherent Ott was rescued by law enforcement officers near his abandoned car, neither the mayor or county council can force the independently elected official from office.

On Tuesday, the council was prepared to receive the results of an audit they had asked County Auditor Scott Tingley to conduct, evaluating the performance of the recorder's office given Ott's obvious problems.

The showdown was postponed when Dole said Ott would be unable to attend the session because his long-running case of shingles had flared up. A summary of the audit said Ott has not been participating directly in the day-to-day management of the recorder's office and its 43 employees, but rather has left that job "almost exclusively" to Dole and senior managers "with very little oversight."