- Rallygoers demand Stuart Adams resign over claims he influenced a law benefiting family.
- The Senate president denies personal gain from SB213; critics argue it reflects unchecked power and corruption.
SALT LAKE CITY — A predominantly conservative crowd of more than 100 gathered in front of the Capitol building on Sunday afternoon, calling on the top Senate Republican to step down over claims he initiated passage of a law that helped his granddaughter reach a plea bargain.
Many railed against "elites," who they say often get away with crimes — one woman held a sign asking about the release of files related to child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein — and accused state leaders of going easy on those accused of sex crimes against children.
"Elites are getting away with everything in this country and it's a problem," said veteran and activist Mike Glover.
Senate President Stuart Adams has rejected calls for his resignation and defended his decision not to disclose his personal connection to the bill as it was debated and passed into law early last year.
A provision of SB213 — which allows 18-year-old high school students to face lesser criminal charges than child rape if they engage in noncoercive sexual activity with teenagers under the age of 14 — was initiated by Adams, though he did not sponsor the bill or acknowledge that his granddaughter was facing charges after having sex with a 13-year-old. She was an adult but still in high school at the time.
The change allows 18-year-old high schoolers to be charged with a third-degree felony for unlawful sexual activity with a child.
Although the law was not made retroactive, the "legislative intent" was referenced during the woman's sentencing hearing in August of 2024, and 2nd District Judge Rita Cornish said she still had to "grapple" with the change. Adams' granddaughter was originally charged with two counts of child rape and two counts of child sodomy, first-degree felonies, but ultimately pleaded guilty to a second-degree felony and three counts of sexual battery, a class A misdemeanor.
Adams said SB213 was not meant to have an impact on his granddaughter's case, and said he made the right call by not disclosing his connection. Given his position in the Senate, he argues it would have unfairly influenced the legislative process if he had told his colleagues about his connection, saying: "There's nothing unusual about how this bill came about."
Rally organizers called on Adams to resign his Senate seat, his leadership post or amend the bill to roll back the changes in SB213. Jason Preston, the founder of We Are the People, the group that organized the rally, said it was a conflict of interest for Adams to initiate the law change, but he's more concerned with the state's overall stance toward those who abuse children.
"My interest in this is not about Stuart Adams," he said. "It's about waking up the people that we have a massive problem in this state. One in seven children are being sexually abused. How do we sit by?"
Preston said his organization plans to work on a ballot initiative to undo the SB213 changes and to remove Adams from office, though the specifics of the initiative are not clear. Lawmakers usually only need to disclose financial conflicts of interest, but Preston said he thinks that should apply to more situations.
"Absolutely, yeah. They work for the people," he said. "If they're getting benefits on the side, they should absolutely be disclosing that. I think that's not left versus right; that's just good common sense."
In a statement to KSL.com Sunday, Adams said it is "discouraging to see people blindly swayed by false narratives pushed by some media and others."
"With an incorrect and dishonest foundation, it is difficult to reach a fair and honest conclusion," he said. "Anyone who honestly looks at the bill will understand it has nothing to do with forcible rape, assault, coercion or threats. Those crimes continue to carry the full weight of first-degree felonies. I stand firmly with survivors of sexual abuse and remain committed to ensuring justice for such crimes. Instead, SB213 taps into Utah's existing legal framework for addressing consensual, non-coercive sexual activity between adolescents. The two should not be conflated."
On Friday, Utah House Speaker Mike Schultz said he would convene stakeholders to review the policy changed by SB213, something Adams said he welcomed "to ensure our laws are thoughtful and reflect Utah's values."
Preston was joined by other speakers, including several who described being sexually abused by older family members or people of trust. Some grew tearful recounting past experiences and said the law should do more to protect people like them.
"I hope today sparks a change of the people waking up and realizing they cannot count on politicians, the media organizations, to protect these kids," Preston told KSL.com. "What I hope today is, is something that starts small and turns into something where, next time we're here, we're here in the thousands, and the politicians that are protecting perpetrators are removed."
Anger from the right and left
It's not just conservatives who have taken issue with Adams since news of his connection to SB213 first surfaced. One Democratic state senator has called on Adams to resign, as has the chairman of the state Democratic party.
Some 150 people gathered to put their displeasure in words at a pair of letter-writing events in Bountiful and Salt Lake City on Wednesday and Thursday. Taylor Knuth, the executive director of Alliance for a Better Utah, the left-leaning nonprofit that organized the events, said it can be hard to organize when people feel that the process is "corrupt," but he was encouraged by the turnout.
"They feel helpless," he told KSL.com on Friday. "We feel helpless when we see a Legislature that can pretty much get away with anything they want without any accountability or checks and balances."
He pointed to recent efforts by GOP lawmakers to exert more control over the courts and said the supermajority Republicans enjoy on Capitol Hill allows corruption to continue unchecked.
"I think that the concentration of power within the Republican supermajority ... I would argue, allows this abuse of power to fester," he said. "Adams is coming back and saying, 'Hey, this happens all the time' — which, I'll let Utahns decide how they feel about that — but he's admitting that this sort of situation is happening all the time in the state Legislature, and that in and of itself is concerning to me."
Politicians should do a better job of looking out for and advocating for those without power, rather than prioritizing helping someone close to power, he added.
"That 13-year-old child was the individual closest to the pain, which means they should have been closest to the power," Knuth said. "Where are their views and beliefs on the criminal justice system being represented in the legislative process? Do they have a powerful grandfather who can make the law change?"
Knuth said he doesn't buy lawmakers' explanations for the law change and said it's only through reporting that the public has been given real access into the legislative process.
"I think that it just adds to the theory that there are secretive, backroom deals and whispered conversations that are always kept off record," he said.
