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SALT LAKE CITY — Two former Utah attorneys general and an Olympic gold medalist are refusing to testify in the trial of a Salt Lake businessman accused of fraud in a failed $3.5 billion luxury resort project.
Opening arguments are anticipated Wednesday in 3rd District Court in the case against Marc Sessions Jenson and his brother Stephen R. Jenson, who are charged with communications fraud, theft by deception and money laundering.
Prosecutors allege the brothers deceived investors with their plans for a private ski and golf development on Mount Holly in Beaver County.
Lawyers for Marc Jenson subpoenaed former Attorneys General Mark Shurtleff and John Swallow and alpine skier Ted Ligety to appear in court to testify Tuesday. But attorneys for the three men have filed objections.
Swallow and Shurtleff cite the pending criminal charges against them in the same court and refuse to testify based on the Fifth Amendment, according to court documents.
On Monday, Marc Session Jenson's attorney Marcus Mumford filed a motion for an evidentiary hearing to recuse Judge Elizabeth Hruby-Mills based on a statement Shurtleff allegedly made when served with the subpoena.
It also struck me as intentionally disrespectful and dismissive of the court, as (Shurtleff) did not identify or refer to the court as 'judge' or even 'Hruby-Mills,' but rather referred to the court as 'Hruby' in a very familiar manner and tone.
–Chad Bennion
Chad Bennion, a former GOP state legislator who works for Mumford's law office, delivered the document to Shurtleff's house on Dec. 30. Bennion in a court declaration says Shurtleff became very dismissive and said, "Hruby isn't going to give Marcus anything in this matter anyway."
The reference was to the judge and Mumford.
Bennion said in the declaration that Shurtleff's response seemed "very odd" and that he got the impression that "Shurtleff was speaking based on some kind of inside information or knowledge."
"It also struck me as intentionally disrespectful and dismissive of the court, as he did not identify or refer to the court as 'judge' or even 'Hruby-Mills,' but rather referred to the court as 'Hruby' in a very familiar manner and tone," Bennion wrote.
Hruby-Mills reviewed the motion and referred it to the presiding 3rd District judge, according to court documents.
Late Monday, associate presiding Judge Deno G. Himonas denied the motion, saying court rules don't allow for an evidentiary hearing and that the motion and Bennion's declaration don't meet the standard for disqualifying the judge.
Related:
Businessman wants Swallow, Shurtleff to testify
A Salt Lake businessman at the heart of the John Swallow scandal wants to put the former attorney general and his predecessor on the witness stand in the criminal case against him.The two former Republican attorneys general face multiple felony charges in an alleged pay-for-play scheme. Marc Jenson claims the men shook him down for money and favors during a visit to the Southern California villa where he lived. He also accused Swallow of securing a "quid pro quo" agreement from him for a $1 million lot in the planned members-only Mount Holly Club. Swallow and Shurtleff say they are innocent.
Hruby-Mills served as the judge in their cases until they were recently reassigned to other judges.
The Jensons planned to turn the former Elk Meadows ski area into a posh resort with homes, a ski mountain and a golf course designed by Jack Nicklaus. They tabbed Ligety to be the resort's director of skiing.
Prosecutors allege the brothers failed to provide investors required information, including that Marc Jenson had served time in prison for not paying taxes and had filed for bankruptcy. Lawyers for the Jensons say the project fell through when the New York-based hedge fund that had backed the plans cut off funding.
Marc Jenson is currently serving a 10-year prison sentence in an unrelated case for selling unregistered securities.
The Utah Attorney General's Office initially filed the charges against the Jensons but removed itself from the case in 2013. Marc Jenson's attorney objected to the office prosecuting the case due to his client's previous relationship with Swallow and Shurtleff. The court appointed the Utah County Attorney's Office to step in.
Assistant Utah County attorney Tim Taylor last week moved to drop the racketeering charges against the Jensons and reduce the first-degree felony fraud charges to second-degree felonies. Marc Jenson and Stephen Jenson have pleaded not guilty.
