Gov. Spencer Cox says he’s “very grateful” he “had no idea” a bill he signed into law easing criminal penalties for 18-year-old high schoolers who have sex with teens too young to consent was prompted by a case involving a relative of Utah Senate President J. Stuart Adams.
“I think it was appropriate for the top person in the Senate not to weigh in on this bill, which is exactly what happened,” Cox said during a news conference Thursday.
Cox said he did not know about the genesis of the provision until he read The Salt Lake Tribune’s story about Adams’ involvement. The governor said he doesn’t believe an ethics investigation is warranted because the facts, as they were first reported by The Tribune, are clear and undisputed.
According to Sen. Kirk Cullimore, one of Adams’ top deputies, the Senate president confided in him that Adams’ 18-year-old relative had sex with a 13-year-old and was facing charges of child rape and child sodomy.
Adams suggested the charges and potential for years of prison time were overly harsh, and in doing so, initiated a process that saw Cullimore consulting with the defense attorney for Adams’ relative to change the law, lowering the punishment for 18-year-olds who are still in high school.
The bill was not explicitly retroactive. However, the prosecutor and the defense attorney and the judge in the case involving Adams’ relative all acknowledged that the change to the legislation impacted the plea bargain in the case.
Under the plea agreement, the 18-year-old received no additional time in prison beyond a week already served, four years of probation and did not have to register as a sex offender.
“There have been times in my term as governor when I’ve been so mad at Stuart Adams that I couldn’t see straight on certain bills,” Cox said. “I can tell you that this is not one of those times. I’m very grateful that I had no idea that this was impacting someone in his family … because it may have changed the way I reacted to the bill.”
As it happened, Cox said, he was focused on whether the new policy — the option to treat 18-year-olds who are still in high school and engage in sex with a 13-year-old differently than those outside of school — was the correct policy, and he ultimately signed the measure, which was part of a much larger criminal justice bill, into law.
“It makes sense, I think, to treat 17- and 18-year-olds — and let me be clear, to give the judge the opportunity, this is not mandated in law — but to give the judge the opportunity to treat an 18-year-old the same as a 17-year-old instead of a 50-year-old,” Cox said.
The governor also took a swipe at legislators, like the House sponsor of the bill, Rep. Karianne Lisonbee, R-Clearfield, who has said she did not know the Adams-spawned provision was in the bill.
“Anybody who says they didn’t know what was in that bill is lying to you or they’re a terrible legislator,” Cox said. “This was not something that was hidden at all. … This provision was talked about multiple times. I knew this provision was in there and so did every other legislator who read the bill.”
Correction • Aug. 21, 1:35 p.m.: The story has been updated to correct Cox’s quote about Adams’ involvement.