Michael Avenatti, the attorney who became widely known while representing adult-film star Stormy Daniels, has been charged with stealing millions of dollars from his clients. Federal prosecutors announced the indictment Thursday, accusing Avenatti of using his clients’ money to pay for a private jet, among other things. Avenatti has vowed to fight the charges and plead not guilty in the case. Avenatti is charged in a separate federal case with trying to extort the Nike company. The attorney, a fierce critic of President Donald Trump, has said he’s made powerful enemies by devoting his career to standing up for underdogs. [WaPost]
Happy Friday!
Topping the news: Utah lawmakers praised the U.S. Senate’s decision to confirm David Bernhardt as secretary of the Interior Department, despite environmentalist protests that he is wrapped up in the oil and gas industry he spent a large portion of his career representing. Sen. Mitt Romney said he thinks Bernhardt has the experience necessary to handle the job of overseeing America’s vast public lands. [Trib] [DNews]
-> Residents of an apartment complex in Salt Lake City are concerned about potential identity theft after the discovery that a maintenance worker has a long criminal history. The property managers are blaming the company that performed the criminal background check, saying nothing alarming had shown up on the check when she was hired last fall. [Trib]
-> The Utah Democratic Party’s executive committee voted to stop paying their chairwoman for the rest of her term because the group is strapped for cash. [Trib]
Tweets of the day: @CarlosUDOT: “Grateful to have @SpencerJCox join us today for a media event introducing the autonomous shuttle UDOT & UTA will be deploying at various locations throughout Utah this year. The lieutenant governor truly understands the world-changing significance of this exciting new technology!”
-> @SpencerJCox: “I volunteered to be the guinea pig today to help show the safety of our new autonomous shuttle pilot project. I’m really glad it stopped.”
-> @jennagiesta: “Two things: Yep, the Buttigieg movement is real, and also, he's not really in any different place than Harris/Warren/O'Rourke. #MOEisreal.”
-> @MikeLMower: “How cool when @SpencerJCox, Justin Harding and I all showed up to an event wearing new blue, windowpane suits. #GQ #utpol.”
-> @slcmayor: “Today we launched EmpowerSLC with @UtahCleanEnergy, a program designed to help our west side neighborhoods save $$ by taking energy saving actions, like replacing lightbulbs to LEDs. #climatemayors #cleanenergy.”
Behind the Headlines: Tribune government and politics editor Dan Harrie, reporter Courtney Tanner, and columnist Robert Gehrke join KCPW guest host Marcie Young Cancio to talk about the week’s top stories, including renewed debate over the enforcement of BYU’s Honor Code.
-> Every Friday at 9 a.m., stream "Behind the Headlines" at kcpw.org, or tune in to KCPW 88.3 FM or Utah Public Radio for the broadcast. Join the live conversation by calling (801) 355-TALK.
Friday quiz: Last week, 98% of you knew about a change in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints’ policy on the children of LGBTQ people, but only 48% knew Utah’s best cup of coffee comes from La Barba. Think you kept up with the news this week? Take our quiz to find out. A new one will post every Friday morning. You can find previous quizzes here. If you’re using The Salt Lake Tribune mobile app, click here. [Trib]
In the news: Leonard Leo, executive vice president of The Federalist Society, paid tribute to former Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch on Thursday during a symposium hosted by the Hatch Foundation. Leo said he couldn’t imagine a successful conservative legal movement without Hatch. [Trib]
-> The Utah Department of Transportation and Utah Transit Authority tested the state’s first fully automatic vehicle as part of a pilot project. Lawmakers passed legislation during the 2019 session to allow the testing and operation of the automated street shuttle on sidewalks and state roads. Lt. Gov. Spencer Cox was also present and praised the technology. [Trib] [KUTV]
-> Veronica Pome’e, the first Polynesian woman to be featured in Sports Illustrated’s annual swimsuit edition and the only plus-sized model to be featured among six finalists, is speaking at a conference in Utah to address violence prevention. [Trib]
-> Tribune columnist Robert Gehrke wrote about congressional attempts to pass balanced budget amendments and whether federal lawmakers are sincere about eliminating deficits. [Trib]
-> Tribune cartoonist Pat Bagley illustrated President Donald Trump and Attorney General William P. Barr playing a game of baseball, with Barr protecting the president. [Trib]
Nationally: Police arrested Julian Assange, WikiLeaks founder, in London on Thursday for conspiring to hack into a Pentagon computer network nearly 10 years ago. Assange had taken shelter in Ecuador’s embassy in Britain to avoid arrest but authorities were able to capture him after the Ecuadorean government suspended his citizenship. [NYTimes] [Politico] [WaPost]
-> Former Obama White House counsel Gregory B. Craig was charged with lying and concealing information from the Justice Department about work he did for Ukraine’s government in 2012. Craig called the charges unjustified. [NYTimes] [Politico] [WaPost]
-> President Donald Trump indicated he is open to holding a third summit meeting with Kim Jong-un, the North Korean leader, despite the fact that previous disarmament talks abruptly fell apart more than a month ago. Trump did point out, though, that he has no plans to ease sanctions on North Korea unless the country vows to give up its entire nuclear arsenal. [NYTimes] [WaPost]
-> Deputy White House policy coordinator May Davis wrote an email in November to immigration officials suggesting that authorities could release detainees into “sanctuary cities," in part to send a message to Democrats. Response to the idea was negative, and ultimately, it was not implemented. [NYTimes] [WaPost]
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-- Bethany Rodgers and Sahalie Donaldson
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