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Democrats Call for Rep. Justin Miller's Resignation

Whittney Evans
House Minority Leader Brian King, Minority Assistant Whip Joel Briscoe and Representative Carol Spackman Moss address the media on Monday.

House Democrats are calling for the resignation of Democratic State Representative Justin Miller amid allegations that he stole roughly $30,000 from Salt Lake County Mayor Ben McAdam’s re-election campaign. But Miller has no plans to step down.

House Minority Leader Brian King says there’s not enough evidence to prompt a legislative ethics investigation into Miller but the allegations are serious enough to warrant his resignation.

“The ongoing investigations significantly impair the ability of Representative Miller to effectively represent the constituents of House District 40,” King says.  

Prior to being elected to the House of Representatives, Miller was Salt Lake County Mayor Ben McAdams campaign manager and later associate deputy mayor.  McAdams fired Miller from his county job in fall of 2014 and has since turned the case over to law enforcement. Davis County Attorney Troy Rawlings is screening for potential charges.

Miller maintains he did nothing wrong.

“I realize it’s politically expedient for House Democrats to take a position on this, but to the point where all we currently have is accusations against a whistleblower, I don’t see any reason to necessarily resign that seat,” Miller says.

In December, Miller delivered a notice of claim to the Salt Lake County District Attorney’s office alleging his termination and allegations of theft are retaliatory. Miller challenged the legality of the Mayor’s business dealings with public affairs firm The Exoro Group. 

Whittney Evans grew up southern Ohio and has worked in public radio since 2005. She has a communications degree from Morehead State University in Morehead, Kentucky, where she learned the ropes of reporting, producing and hosting. Whittney moved to Utah in 2009 where she became a reporter, producer and morning host at KCPW. Her reporting ranges from the hyper-local issues affecting Salt Lake City residents, to state-wide issues of national interest. Outside of work, she enjoys playing the guitar and getting to know the breathtaking landscape of the Mountain West.
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