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SALT LAKE CITY — Amid mounting concerns about his health and absence from work, conversations about Salt Lake County Recorder Gary Ott's potential resignation from office are beginning.
Karmen Sanone, Ott's office aide and apparent girlfriend or fiancee, told the Deseret News on Monday that Ott is considering retirement before the end of his current term, which ends in 2020.
"Gary had made me contact a third party to confidentially reach out to the council to see if they had an appetite to consider an early retirement," Sanone wrote in an email to the Deseret News Monday.
Salt Lake County GOP Chairman Jake Parkinson confirmed that he spoke with Sanone Monday, but declined to elaborate on the contents of the conversation.
Sanone didn't return calls requesting comment Monday, she only replied via email.
Other Salt Lake County Council members and their staff declined to comment.
The news comes less than a week after Salt Lake County Mayor Ben McAdams and other county leaders called for Ott's resignation — welcoming conversations with family members and those closest to Ott to discuss the terms.
Those calls came a day after the Deseret News published a report raising new concerns for Ott's well-being — including a 45-minute recorded conversation in which Ott could not answer questions coherently, and concerns from county workers who worry Ott's attendance at his own office has become increasingly sporadic.
The Deseret News published its first investigative report in February 2016, detailing concerns that the longtime recorder's health could be deteriorating to the point he may no longer be capable of doing his job.
Instead of the addressing concerns about Ott's health — which she has declined to discuss in the past, citing privacy — Sanone on Monday wrote that "for several weeks Gary has been considering the possibility of retiring" after a software program is fully in place in his office.
"He said once this program was in place and running, he had accomplished all that he had set out to do," Sanone said.
Last week's investigative report has also renewed calls for state-level action to close a gap in state law, which doesn't provide a mechanism to remove an elected official experiencing capacity issues or other health concerns.
Ott's sister, Kathy Chamberlain, has also spoken out, worried for her brother's health and repeating accusations that Ott's staff — including Sanone and Ott's chief deputy, Julie Dole — have been "manipulating" him so they can keep their jobs. Sanone and Dole have denied those accusations.
Chamberlain has said Ott's family is interested in working with county leaders to negotiate a retirement that will be in Ott's best interest.
Meanwhile, Salt Lake County District Attorney Sim Gill has confirmed his office has been investigating Ott's well-being. Last year, self-proclaimed concerned citizen Jeremy Roberts called for an investigation into Ott's situation and allegations of possible "elder abuse."
Frustrated over the 9-month-and-counting investigation taking too long, Roberts last week called on the County Council to consider hiring a special investigator.
