Two months before allegations of sexual misconduct against Salt Lake City Council member Eva Lopez Chavez surfaced publicly from four accusers in Utah political circles, the council’s highest-ranking member raised concerns privately about her behavior.

In a newly revealed Feb. 12 email to senior council staff, council Chair Alejandro Puy referred in vague terms to “reports and firsthand accounts” of Lopez Chavez’s “past behavior,” saying it “cannot be dismissed or minimized.”

“I truly lament the circumstances that have brought us to this point,” Puy wrote to the council’s non-elected executive director, Jennifer Bruno, in calling for a review of city policies governing the conduct of council members.

“But when safety and institutional integrity are at issue,” Puy continued, “inaction is not an option for me.”

He also raised concerns on behalf of city staffers, saying “the current environment has at times placed strain” on them and council members alike.

Puy’s email — which followed a formal complaint filed at City Hall by Lopez Chavez herself earlier that same month — sheds light on internal conflict among council members as a series of accusations emerged this week that Lopez Chavez allegedly restrained several people during what they considered unwanted sexual advances.

Lopez Chavez has denied wrongdoing and said in a statement on social media Thursday that she welcomed “a fair and independent investigation” and that she “will defend myself through the proper process.”

She has said the latest allegations should be “treated seriously” and that “the truth will prevail.”

Lopez Chavez also said she would remain in her position on the council while that investigation unfolds.

Not ‘an isolated incident,’ says Puy

Without ever specifying the nature of Lopez Chavez’s alleged actions, Puy wrote to Bruno on Feb. 12 that what he called his “own firsthand knowledge,” as well as the experiences of several council colleagues, “do not describe an isolated incident.”

“They suggest a pattern of conduct that has affected colleagues in our own council, myself and many others in our community and has shaped our working environment,” he said.

Concerns raised over Lopez Chavez’s alleged behavior, Puy said, “go directly to workplace safety and the integrity of our public process.”

Puy, the council member for the city’s west-side District 2, wrote that “when individuals feel compelled to ‘work around’ behavior to keep the peace, it is clear there is a problem that can’t be ignored and must be addressed.”

“Public meetings must remain safe spaces,” he wrote. “No staff member, elected official, or resident should feel threatened, pressured, or placed in a situation they perceive as unsafe.”

Puy did not respond Thursday to additional questions posed by The Salt Lake Tribune about the email to Bruno and ensuing policy review.

But earlier this week, Puy told The Tribune he had initiated the review because he felt “it was important to ensure council takes a thorough look at the complexities surrounding our current HR limbo and investigative processes.”

Council says it is investigating

One of the four people accusing Chavez of sexual misconduct is fellow council member Victoria Petro.

She came forward this week along with Maggie Regier, who worked on Stan Penfold’s mayoral campaign in 2019; Hoang Nguyen, who is now a state representative; and Jen Plumb, now a state senator.

The four said they decided to speak out, in part, because of Lopez Chavez’s candidacy for Congress in Utah’s new 1st District and after her reaction to newly disclosed online posts that fellow candidate Nate Blouin made between 2009 and 2015, including statements that minimized sexual assault.

Petro told The Tribune that she had confided in Puy shortly after a September 2022 incident in which Petro alleges Lopez Chavez grabbed her by the throat, “pushed me back against a pillar so that my back was against the wall and told me, ‘The only reason I still f--- men is because a woman hasn’t shown me what I really want.’”

Puy has confirmed that Petro talked to him after the incident allegedly occurred, and, he said, Petro “was kind of shocked at what had happened.”

Through her attorney, Greg Skordas, Lopez Chavez denied Petro’s account and that she made the statement Petro alleged. “Nothing inappropriate happened,” Skordas said, “and no one ever expressed any concern about Eva’s conduct.”

In a joint statement issued late Wednesday, the City Council said it is investigating the latest allegations, which were first reported Wednesday by The Tribune.

‘Structural challenges’ in policing council member conduct

In his Feb. 12 memo, Puy also formally removed himself from any direct coordination or oversight over a review of the council’s code of conduct, current practices and safeguards meant to ensure safety.

He said the decision to pass that oversight duty to newly elected council colleague Erika Carlsen instead would eliminate “any doubts” about his intentions and “ensure the process remains impartial and credible.”

Carlsen, in response to Tribune inquiries Thursday, confirmed she’d overseen that review and said that Puy’s call followed a code-of-conduct complaint filed by Lopez Chavez against Puy and Petro for “discussing alleged prior incidents.”

Carlsen said she first learned of Petro’s allegations against Lopez Chavez as part of that review.

The complaint against Puy and Petro, she said, was investigated by Bruno and the city attorney’s office and “was considered closed in late February” — though she did not disclose any outcome.

Carlsen said she was not aware of any formal complaints received by the council about Lopez Chavez’s alleged behavior from members of the public nor in connection with the council’s public processes.

She said that “as an individual,” she could not speak to any formal complaints from city staff.

Carlsen said the review process she oversaw, however, highlighted a need for greater clarity in the council’s code of conduct, which was hurriedly adopted in late 2023 — a month before Lopez Chavez took office — and used for the first time as part of reviewing Lopez Chavez’s complaint.

That broader policy review called for by Puy, Carlsen added, continues on, now in the hands of the city attorney’s office.

With regard to additional investigations, Carlsen said the council “is still gathering information about the allegations and what options exist within our authority.”

“Any formal decisions on how we move forward will need to be voted on by the council and we have not yet had an opportunity to meet or hold a formal vote,” Carlsen said in an email Friday. “Until then, we will continue evaluating the situation to determine next steps.”

Puy, in an email exchange on Wednesday, said he’d received regular updates from Carlson on the review’s progress. He echoed a similar focus, saying the council faces “structural challenges” in policing the conduct of its members.

“We do not have prosecutorial authority,” Puy wrote. “We cannot remove elected officials, and elected officials are not subject to many standard HR rules.”