Lame-duck Utah Senate President Stuart Adams is threatening to sue four critics — including State Auditor Tina Cannon — for statements his attorneys say were false and defamatory about Adams’ role in the approval of a controversial Box Elder data center, changing a law to benefit a relative and relocating the auditor’s office.

Three letters, dated Aug. 13 and obtained by The Salt Lake Tribune, were sent to the four people, demanding they retract their allegedly defamatory statements within 14 days of receiving the letters or Adams is “prepared to promptly take all steps necessary to protect his rights,” including seeking damages and attorney fees.

In addition to Cannon, the letters were sent to Utah-based Uriah Kennedy and Ingrid Bettridge, hosts of the “God & Country Podcast,” where Cannon appeared, and Gabrielle Finlayson, senior partner at the political consulting firm Elevate Strategies.

“I want the lies to stop,” Adams said in a statement Wednesday morning. “For months, false statements have been spread about me despite the facts and the public record, showing a reckless disregard for the truth, with the intent of damaging my reputation and causing tremendous harm to my family. … This is about setting the record straight. Respond to the letters, correct the record and apologize for the lies.”

Cannon is not backing down.

“I refused to be bullied by President Adams, and I certainly won’t be bullied by Mr. Adams,” Cannon said in a text message late Tuesday. The use of “Mr. Adams” is a reference to the senator losing his title after failing in his reelection bid to Stephanie Hollist in the Republican primary in June.

During the auditor’s appearance on the June 28 podcast — after Adams lost the election — Cannon and the hosts discussed efforts to remove her office in the Capitol, which Cannon characterized as retaliation for her trying to expose fraud and corruption in government.

Cannon filed, and then dropped, a lawsuit last December over the efforts to relocate her office, which, for now, remains in the Capitol.

In the show, Cannon said that Adams controls the Capitol Preservation Board that allocates space in the building, that she still doesn’t know where her new office space will be, that Adams bullied some senators and promised others her former office space if they helped him be reelected as Senate president, and that he changed a law to benefit a relative facing child rape charges.

Similar letters sent to Cannon, Kennedy and Bettridge assert the statements are false. Specifically, it says that the governor chairs the Capitol board, that Cannon’s new space has been publicly discussed, that Adams neither bullied nor offered space to senators and that the change in the law was unrelated to his relative’s criminal case.

Both letters demand retractions from all three for the comments on the podcast.

Kennedy, who said he was neighbors with Adams for four or five years and knows him well, did not expect the senator’s reaction.

“We’ve been friends. It surprises me he didn’t just call me,” Kennedy said. “To come out like this, he’s either trying to run again for another position and wants to clear his name, or it’s a semblance of narcissism, where he just can’t handle hearing, ‘No.’”

Bettridge said they have had numerous guests on the podcast during its 18-month run and “time after time, you’re hearing [stories] about his misuse of power.”

Adams has been scheduled to be on the show, only to cancel, she said, but is welcome to join them to address the issues he has.

Kennedy said Adams’ response has, if anything, “put more flames under this, so I don’t understand his thought process. … We’re not going to back down. We’re probably going to just get more vocal with it.”

The threat to Finlayson targets an Instagram post she made after Adams’ primary election loss. It takes aim at several statements: that Adams changed a law to help have rape charges against his relative become misdemeanors; that he committed “years” of campaign finance violations; and that he kept the approval of the Box Elder data center from the public.

The letter to Finlayson again contends that the change to the criminal statute had no bearing on his relative’s case, that he was never cited for campaign finance violations, and that the public was notified of the data center vote through a news release and public meeting notices.

“The voters have spoken, and I’m sure Mr. Adams is unhappy about the result,” Finlayson said Wednesday. “But looking to blame others, rather than taking accountability, is not the answer. I will continue to exercise my First Amendment right to free speech and will not be silenced by intimidation, threats or bullying.”

Adams was ousted from the Legislature after more than two decades in the body, losing to Hollist 43% to 34% in the Republican primary. The loss was due, in large part, to blowback over the rushed vote to approve the data center, taken by the Military Installation Development Authority, which Adams chairs.

As public opposition grew against the Box Elder data center, and only weeks ahead of the June primary, Adams backpedaled on his support of the massive project, demanding investor Kevin O’Leary reduce the physical footprint of the campus and make a series of concessions.

Finlayson is among several Utahns suing O’Leary for defamation after O’Leary accused them of being agents for the Chinese Communist Party because they opposed his data center.

Adams will remain Senate president until January, when the newly elected senators are sworn into office and Republican senators choose Adams’ replacement.

Legally, Adams has an extremely high bar to clear if he chooses to sue, according to RonNell Andersen Jones, a University of Utah law professor who specializes in free speech and libel.

To protect free discussion on matters of public concern, the Supreme Court has set a very high bar for public officials who sue for libel, she said. “It is a much harder case than it would be for an ordinary citizen in a defamation action.”

To prevail, the official would have to not only show that the person who said the statements knew they were false, but did so with reckless disregard for the truth.

“Misunderstandings, mistakes or sloppy fact-finding aren’t enough to lead to recovery,” she said. “The court has made clear that in a healthy system of self-government, officials will largely use their own powerful channels of communication to just speak out and clarify any errors in what was said about them, rather than suing critics for money over the misstatements.”

Additionally, in 2023, the Legislature passed the Uniform Public Expression Protection Act, aimed at preventing lawsuits aimed at silencing free speech. The law protects an individual’s expressions “on a matter of public concern,” and allows for an expedited petition for dismissal of lawsuits aimed at stifling the exercise of free speech, plus the collection of attorney fees and court costs if the dismissal is granted.

Every senator voted for passage of the law, including Adams.

Sen. Todd Weiler, R-Bountiful, who is a lawyer, said the legal standard for a public figure to prevail is high, but Adams hired a reputable firm — Fabian VanCott — and a good attorney. “So it’s obvious to me a lot of thought and research went into the letters,” he said. “Ultimately a judge would have to decide.”

This type of legal action by a public figure, Weiler concedes, is unusual.

“I haven’t seen anything like this. I think this is somewhat unprecedented,” he said, “but I also think the personal attacks on [Adams], even after he lost, are somewhat unprecedented.”

Correction, 9:10 a.m. • This story has been updated to correct that it’s not yet clear if Stephanie Hollist will be in the Utah Senate in January. Utah’s general election is on November 3.