This Day In Gay Utah History January 22nd

22 January 22

1963- Some eight to ten cases all in the same area of the city of indecent exposure or obscene acts have been reported to Salt Lake City Police during the past 10 days. All the incidents occurred between 50 and 500 East and from South Temple to 3rd Avenue.

1976- Thursday Letters to Editor Daily Utah Chronicle page 5  Editor-“I am a woman, church goer, faculty-member, sports enthusiasts, caring individual. I can share these facets of myself with many people.  I am also a Lesbian. This I share at my peril. Thank you for your openness and conscience raising.  It may help people to be less afraid of their own feelings and more able to understand mine- Anonymous.( (1/22/76 Utah Daily Chronicle )

1976  Letters to Editor Daily Utah Chronicle page 5  Editor “ I was pleased to see your

Ken Storer

front page article on the Gay Community Services Center.  The tone of the article was commendable, attempting to empathetically  deal with a controversial topic with insightful and fair reporting. I also personally commend Ken Storer for being willing to “come out” and be visible. I realize full well the risks such courageous openness can still bear in this conservative community. One support that is necessary for anyone’s well being either Gay or Straight is the availability of positive public models to identify with. From such, a community of people can be built who can share from the strengths of their own experiences. Hopefully Gay people in Salt Lake can begin to use the center to create such community support.  Of interest to Gay Chronicle readers are some of the activities of the Campus Christian Center, 232 University Street.  As one part of implementing the center’s goal of fostering dialogue with unsupported elements of the higher education community and the building of community as a socially healing experience, we are offering an on going Gay Consciousness Raising Group and a two part presentation on Gay History and Literature, Sunday evenings March 7 and 14 at 8 p.m. For further information on these activities please contact me through the Campus Christian Center. I hope that our contribution will add to the continuing dealing between churches, mental health professionals, and the Gay Community. It is only through our continuing availability of public dialogue that we can be accountable and of true service to the individual men and women in Utah’s communities- Paul Larson (1/22/1976 Daily Utah Chronicle page 5 )

1978- The Board of Directors for the Gay Service Center met.  In attendance were Mike Reid, Chuck Harding, Ray Henke, John  Meng, Steve Barker, and Bill Woodbury.  Board met to plan Gay Pride Week at the end of June and a Kegger in May. At this meeting Chuck Harding resigned to move to Sacramento.

1980-The National Gay Task Force held a press conference to denounce the movie Windows which featured a deranged lesbian.

1982 Gay and Lesbian Mormons, Lambda News, San Jose, 22 January 1982. Recently we received word from Affirmation United Kingdom about one of our people named David. David told his family he was gay at the age of 15. His father, a local church leader, made him an outcast in his own family. David's family would walk the other way if they met on the street. He was told never to try to contact the family. David was rushed several times to the hospital for emergency treatment after having mutilated his body with knives and razor blades. Within the last month, David committed suicide. In sobs, Affirmation was thanked by a friend of David's for the help and support provided. But David is dead. David was but another victim of the injustices of the church and its attitude towards Gay and Lesbian people. We of Affirmation San Jose/South Bay hope the church one day understands. Until then, we fight their ignorance and try to heal and help our own. ... Richard E. Postlewaite President Affirmation, San Jose

Clair Harward

1986 -An excommunicated member of the Mormon Church suffering from AIDS whose plight received national attention earlier this month has been admitted to a hospital and doctors say he is expected to live only a few weeks.  Inquiries from reporters through out the nation continued to trickle in after Clair Harward 26, Ogden, told his story about dying from AIDS. He was diagnosed as having AIDS related cancer in August 1984. Harward was admitted to St. Benedict’s Hospital last week after conditions worsened and he said the hospitalization was a welcome respite from the continual inquiries from reporters. Mean while the Mormon Church has offered to help and others are pitching in as well.  Bishop Brent S. Farr who befriended Harward in his Ogden Ward after the AIDS victim was excommunicated by another bishop said he has received several letters for Harward and numerous callers have asked how Harward is doing and where to deliver food for him (SL Tribune C3)

David Nelson

 

Bud Willoughby

1987-At a Salt Lake City Council meeting Chief of Police Bud Willoughby announced that the police would receive Gay Sensitivity training for the first time due to an audit of the department by Gay activist David Nelson. “During the final phases of the police audit it came to our attention that a group from the Gay community expressed a concern about the possibility of police harassment of the perception of insensitivity on the part of the police. In our sensitivity training, we must address the reality as well as the perception.” Said Willoughby.

Garth Chamberlain

1989 Sunday- Jim Rieger and I did three programs for

Donald Steward

Concerning Gays and Lesbians. The first program was an interview with Garth Chamberlain an officer of LGSU for the first half and the second half we promoted The Gay Historical Society. The 2^nd program was a long interview with Donald Steward about the Names Project coming to Utah in March. Don Steward is the media coordinator for the event. The 3^rd program which will air on Valentine’s Day we talked about VD and STDs. I talked about my own personal experience with going to the Salt Lake Health Clinic and what people could expect there. [1989 Journal of Ben Willliams]

1991-AIDS activists interrupted a nationally televised CBS newscast to protest the US government's spending of $1 billion a day on the Persian Gulf war and only $5 billion over a ten year period on AIDS research and services.

1991-Blue Cross Blue Shield of Iowa announced that same sex partners of employees are not eligible for family health insurance coverage even if employers are willing to pay for it.

1991 UTAH GROUP NOTES 377 ASSAULTS ON GAYS By Lisa Riley Roche, Staff Writer  Last year 377 homosexuals were verbally or physically attacked in the state, according to findings of the Anti-Violence Project of the Gay and Lesbian Community Council of Utah.  "Anti-Gay and Lesbian Violence in Utah," a 24-page report, was released Monday during the Gay And Lesbian Utah Democrats' first annual lobby day at the State Capitol. The month long survey of violent acts against homosexuals in Utah begins by stating that for many Utahns, the state is "a safe, worry-free environment in which to live. "Most people have little to fear as they walk down the street. This is not true for gay and lesbian citizens, a majority of whom fear future victimizations because of their sexual orientation . . . " Through personal interviews last December and reports taken over a 24-hour telephone line, the report documented 172 incidents of verbal harassment and 205 incidents of physical violence. Verbal harassment included anti-homosexual epithets and anti-AIDS language. The physical violence included 24 cases of assault, 14 rapes or sexual assaults and 31 cases of being chased or followed. There is a three-page list of reported instances and a copy of a flier sent to leaders of the Lesbian and Gay Student Union at the University of Utah that is decorated with a swastika and reads in part, Save America. Kill Gays.” Eighty-four percent of the respondents said they had been victimized in some way during their lifetime because of their sexual orientation, and 15 percent said they had been a victim of physical violence within the past year. About 20 members of the Gay and Lesbian Utah Democrats caucused for an hour to hear how they could influence the Legislature on a variety of issues, including halting so-called hate crimes.(Deseret News)

1991 The Salt Lake Tribune Democratic Leader Wants State to Keep Track of Hate Crimes By Douglas Parker Tribune Political Editor A proposed Utah Hate Crime Statistics Act was highlighted Monday as  a meeting of gays and lesbians convened at the state Capitol to discuss legislative lobbying techniques. At the same time, a 14-page report  asserting documentation of 377 threatening and violent incidents in the  state last year against this minority group was released by the  Anti-Violence Project of the Gay and Lesbian Community Council of  Utah.” What’s happening in Utah, I think, is that a lot of people don't believe there is a problem here of minority groups' constitutional rights being

Frank Piganelli

violated," said Rep. Frank R. Pignanelli, D-Salt Lake City, minority leader. He will sponsor a bill to have law-enforcement agencies submit statistics to a central state office on crimes committed against  individuals based on their race, religion, sexual orientation or ethnicity. The legislation is being drafted for introduction. The Utah Hate Crime Statistics Act is modeled after federal legislation passed last year that requires the U.S. Justice Department to collect similar data, a bill sponsored by Utah's Republican Sen. Orrin Hatch. Guidelines for compiling federal statistics are still to be circulated, gay leaders noted. Rep. Pignanelli addressed a Human Rights Day seminar of the Gay and Lesbian Utah Democrats, the political action committee founded last year by David Nelson, who serves as co-chairman. County Commissioner Randy Horiuchi welcomed participants and encouraged private citizen lobbying. The data gathered on 1990 incidents against gays and lesbians came from victims' reports given on 24-hour telephone "hotline" and a month-long circulation of a questionnaire among 234 gay and lesbian Utahns by the Anti-Violence Project.” We documented 172 incidents of verbal harassment {epithets and anti-AIDS language}, and 205 incidents of physical violence - including 48 physical assaults, two homicides and 22 cases of arson or vandalism," said Michael Aaron, who prepared the report.” Perhaps a better indication of the actual scope of anti-gay and lesbian violence is the indication that 84 percent of those surveyed have experienced some sort of victimization in their lifetime because they are gay or lesbian. Fifteen percent reported that they were a victim of physical violence in just the past year," he added. Mr. Aaron suggested the number of episodes documented is still greatly less than the actual extent of the problem because many in the community are reluctant to report incidents with the AVP or the police to protect their privacy.

1992-Friday-Hundreds of Utahns will be forced to give blood for AIDS tests under  a bill introduced in the  Legislature proposing that anyone convicted of prostitution or soliciting a prostitute be tested for HIV.  Results of the tests would be kept on record. Any prostitute or customer found to be HIV positive and who is subsequently arrested for prostitution or soliciting would face felony charges and possible prison time. The intent of the law is to help police and health officials keep AIDS-infected prostitutes off the street, said the bill's

sponsor, Rep. Kirk E. Oscarson, D-Sandy.The measure is opposed again this year by the American Civil Liberties Union and the Utah AIDS Foundation. Robert Austin, associate director of the Utah AIDS Foundation, called the bill ``one more instance where the hysteria around HIV prevents any kind of rational response.'' Kathryn Kendell, the ACLU legal director, agreed the bill is likely to win approval but said the ACLU remains concerned. `In the hysteria over AIDS, people find it very easy to sacrifice constitutional protections, particularly the constitutional protections of the `undesirables,' '' she said. (01/22/93  Page: B4  SLTribune)

1992 Wednesday I received a surprise call from David Sharpton. He sounded so weak. He

David Sharpton

said he had been in the hospital again with pneumonia. The air quality is killing him. He also said that he's moving from Utah on February 11th to go live with his Gay uncle and his lover in Ontario California. David will be 33 years old on February 8th. He sounded really frail and a lot like all of the old fight is gone. I guess the DDC wasn't effective against the virus. David Sharpton has received priority treatment in Utah because of who he is. I wonder if anyone will give a shit about him in California where he will be just one of thousands. Dr. Ries has been a saint with him here. I guess he and his boyfriend Mike Angotti will separate and go their own way too. With David leaving Utah it will be an end of an era. When David first came to Utah in 1987, some people didn't even think he had AIDS because he seemed so healthy at the time. AIDS does sweep everyone away indiscriminately, the beautiful and plain, the young and old, meek and bold, the hearty and the lame. I told David that I loved him and that we were being recycled for a much better place. [Journal of Ben Williams]

Joseph Nicolosi

1995 California psychotherapist Joseph Nicolosi will visit the University of Utah Monday to discuss reparative therapy for what he calls ``non gay homosexuals'' -- men who want to change their sexual orientation. His views will not go unchallenged.  Nicolosi will appear from noon to 2:30 p.m. in the U.'s Olpin Union Ballroom. Immediately afterward, the Women's Resource Center in the same building will host a rebuttal panel until 4:30 p.m. The dueling panels come as no surprise to student Arlen Shepherd, who fought to have Nicolosi lecture at the U. Conservative views such as Nicolosi's rarely get a fair hearing, not just at the U., but at colleges nationwide, he says. That is why he and fellow students formed the ``Historical Study Group,'' which will air conservative viewpoints ``that otherwise would not be heard.'' Shepherd spent $1,800 of his own money to advertise Nicolosi's speech. The Associated Students of the University of Utah agreed after some debate to fund the $1,250 for his lecture fee, air fare and hotel room. Political correctness is no worse at the U. than anywhere else, Shepherd says, but still it is drowning out the conservative viewpoint at precisely the place where all views should be considered. ``To me, this is what an institution of higher learning is all about -- you can say what you want. But that is not true when it comes to touching the sacred icons of liberalism.'' Robert Rhoades, president of the Lesbian and Gay Student Union (LGSU) at the U., defends Nicolosi's right to express his views. Nevertheless, he finds the notion of reparative therapy too dangerous to leave unanswered. He worked with the Women's Resource Center on the rebuttal panel discussion. ``I feel that he ought to have the right to speak, but at the same time I'm real scared about anyone who goes through these reparative therapies,'' he says. ``Anything that promotes guilt or self-loathing I'm against and so is LGSU.''    After Nicolosi's speech, the panel will offer an alternative to his ideas that homosexuality can or should be repaired. ``You don't need to go through reparative therapy, or any other kind of therapy,'' Rhoades says. ``You can learn that it's OK that a person is gay or lesbian.''  Rhoades argues Nicolosi represents society's true illness, which is homophobia. ``The majority of the problem lies in healing the perception that the person has of themselves, which stems from society,'' he says, adding the title of Nicolosi's U. speech -- ``Healing Homosexuality'' is evidence of homophobia. ``The very word `healing' connotes homophobia. It presents that it is an illness that needs to be treated, that it is wrong, and that it is damaging to society.''  Shepherd is used to such reactions when the subject of Nicolosi's work comes up. He first learned of reparative therapy during a political science class where students were debating an amendment to the Civil Rights Act that would make gay men and lesbians a protected class. The fact Shepherd never had heard of Nicolosi before then seemed evidence of how political correctness has suppressed such views. He says he has heard of many studies documenting the biological origins of homosexuality, but the media ignore studies like Nicolosi's. ``Here we have a scientific argument, not ethical, moral or religious, but based on empirical studies and clinical evidence of a psychologist. And here is an argument that is not being taken at face value, and I know it is because of political correctness,'' Shepherd says. Nicolosi complains publicly about the same thing. Lobbying by gay activists, not scientific studies, led to the removal of homosexuality from the American Psychiatric Association's list of disorders two decades ago, he writes in the December 1993 issue of Insight magazine.  Now the American Psychiatric Association is debating whether to declare reparative therapies such as his unethical. Nicolosi traces homosexuality to childhood development, where the mother is over protective and too intimate and the father is punitive and distant. From childhood on, the homosexual is unable to form genuine, non erotic relationships with other men, Nicolosi believes. His therapy, simply, is to help them develop such friendships. Most of the men Nicolosi says he has helped are ``non gay homosexuals,'' conservative men whose religious or social values reject homosexuality. He distinguishes them from gay men who are comfortable with their gay lifestyle. Nicolosi is not the only proponent of reparative therapies. Psychiatrist Charles Socarides, author of Psychoanalytic Therapy of Sexual Perversions, also argues that homosexuality is a developmental disorder. Rhoades argues such therapies serve only to increase gay men's feelings of guilt. No one actually is ``cured.'' ``It simply pushes down the homosexual feelings that people have until they resurface,'' he says. ``It's kind of a Band-Aid, but the Band-Aid covers up the real problem, which is the homophobia of society.''  (01-22-95  Page: B2 THE SALT LAKE TRIBUNE)

1999, Same-sex couples, unmarried straight couples and polygamists will be prohibited from adopting children in state custody. The Board of Child and Family Services voted 7-2 Friday to require that caseworkers verify that adults in prospective adoptive homes are related to prospective parents by blood, legal marriage or adoption. The policy does not prevent single-parent adoptions. The revision, which also calls for criminal background and child abuse screenings of each adult present in the adoptive home, goes into effect immediately, said board chairman Scott H. Clark, who proposed the change. Clark, a Salt Lake attorney and adoptive father of 18 children, said his proposal was grounded in law, social science research and his own belief that traditional two-parent families can provide the greatest degree of stability to children in the state's foster care system. Most private adoption agencies in Utah follow a similar rule, he said. "I believe the state has the ultimate responsibility to make the best placement choices for its children. We have the most vulnerable, most needy children in our custody," he said. Regnal Garff, a board member and retired juvenile court judge, said he resists any policy that makes adoption placements more difficult. "I don't think married couples have a monopoly on the ability to love, understand or create a stable, loving environment," Garff said. He and board member Paula Johnson cast dissenting votes. Each of the councils that advise the board -- among them the Child Abuse and Neglect Council and the Adoption Advisory Council --

Bradley Weischedel

opposed the policy. Bradley Weischedel, a social worker who with his gay partner adopted a son through a private agency, urged the board to reject the policy. "As a gay couple who recently completed the 28-hour foster parent/adoption preparation course offered by the DCFS (Division of Child and Family Services), we are completely dumbfounded that anyone on the board of DCFS would even consider reducing the number of potential parents for at-risk children in the state's custody. "That training helped us become even more clearly aware of the great need for loving, safe homes for these children," Weischedel said. Gayle Ruzicka of the Utah Eagle Forum urged adoption of the policy. She questioned whether a child adopted by a same-sex household would one day wonder "Why me? Why wasn't she placed in a home where she had a mommy and daddy? Would she ever wonder why a state would let that happen?" Salt Lake attorney Joanna Kobak-Hudson testified that she was raised by a lesbian couple. "The only difference I had growing up was trying to understand the hatred people had toward my family. This policy is based on quite outdated assumptions," she said. Carmen Thompson, spokeswoman for Tapestry of Polygamy, testified in support of the portion of the policy that would prohibit couples practicing polygamy from adopting children. Children in polygamous households often receive inadequate education, health care and parenting, she said. "Some are even forced into arranged marriages at a premature age," Thompson said. "I recently returned from southern Utah, where I was told of two 8-year-old girls who were married to men in their late 40s. Utah cannot allow this to continue, but to voluntarily place a child in this situation is inhumane and an atrocity." The American Civil Liberties Union of Utah lobbied against the policy, calling it illegal and unwise. "Obviously, I'm disappointed. I think the hearing clearly demonstrates this is a non-solution to a non-problem in this state. Children in the custody of DCFS are overwhelmingly placed with heterosexual, married couples, and in limited circumstances, DCFS exercised judgment (about) what was in the best interest of children to make other placements," said Stephen Clark, legal director for the ACLU, following the vote. DCFS director Ken Patterson told the board that in fiscal year 1998, 328 children in state custody were adopted. Of those, 305 were placed with married couples and 23 were adopted by single parents. "This data tells me we're able to attract married couples and allow single people to adopt if this is in the best interest of the child," Patterson said. Doug Wortham, executive director of the Gay and Lesbian Community Center of Utah, decried the decision and predicted it will face a legal challenge. "When you move to eliminate very worthy and caring parents, children suffer first and families suffer second," he said.

2003The Salt Lake Tribune Gun Restriction Plan Advances BY Kirsten Stewart A bill paving the way for police to slap convicted violent criminals with a second-degree felony if they so much as offer to purchase or sell firearms moved swiftly through committee Tuesday. It already is illegal in Utah for violent criminals, including parolees, to purchase, transfer, own or use a gun. But Rep. Ty McCartney, D-Salt Lake City, wants to expand those restrictions. “There are many occasions where gang leaders try to buy weapons for gang members. In order to make an arrest and prosecute, we have to place fully operational firearms in their hands" -- not a good idea, said McCartney, a detective in Salt Lake's metro gang unit. Under McCartney's measure, police would need only supply proof that a felon had agreed, consented or arranged to transfer a gun. Surprisingly, as House Judiciary Chairman Rep. Ben Ferry noted, the bill encountered no opposition from gun rights activists in the audience. David  Nelson of the newly organized gay gun rights group the Pink Pistols said after the committee hearing he considers the bill harmless.___

2005 CYBER SLUTS Subject: Performer and Volunteer Auditions  Calling All Sluts! The Utah Cyber Sluts are looking for new performers and volunteers to help fill out their lineup, and fulfill their community service mission. If you have always wanted to perform camp drag wearing big hair, big boots, loud make up, and truly appalling fashion, then this is your golden opportunity. Interested applicants can contact Chevy Suburban, the Madame Superior of the Utah Cyber Sluts. Performers need to audition a comic piece in character and costume before the current members, although the Sluts will provide plenty of guidance and assistance to help develop a character and "look". The Utah Cyber Sluts perform at local events such as Gay Pride, the Park City 4th of July Parade, Pridaho, UGRA and RCGSE events, and host benefit shows and Cyber Slut Bingo for local charities and causes such as the GLCCU, SLAC, Breast Cancer Awareness, Hate Crimes Legislation, and many more. Current members include Andromeda Strange, Beneatha Serta, Anita Dingy, Tracie Aviary, Ruby Ridge, Beverley Heels, and Chevy Suburban. The Cyber Sluts are currently hosting Bingo for a ten week season at Todd's Bar and Grill on Wednesday nights from 8-10PM, to benefit Camp Pinecliff Weekend (a camp for people with HIV/AIDS and their caregivers held every September above Coalville for the last 14 years). Donald Steward

2006 Sunday- Buttars stands out as morals crusader Be assured, where state senator goes, controversy follows By Matt Canham The Salt Lake Tribune WEST JORDAN - At times it appears as if state Sen. Chris Buttars is two different politicians. There is Buttars the Advocate who champions drug treatment programs, supports raising the minimum wage and fights to assist child crime victims. And then there's Buttars the Conservative Crusader who has made mortal enemies of gay rights activists, atheists, evolution supporters and the American Civil Liberties Union. But the West Jordan Republican says his views are consistent and come from one powerful source. "A great deal of my political stands come from my faith," said Buttars, a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. "I represent the values that have always been America's morality." Buttars' unwavering stands on what he calls "moral absolutes" have made him the state Senate's biggest lightning rod since he joined the body in 2001. This session, he is sponsoring bills to ban gay support clubs from high schools and to require science teachers to tell students the state doesn't endorse the theory of evolution. He has previously sponsored legislation banning gay marriage and requiring schoolchildren to recite the Pledge of Allegiance. Buttars resembles a bulldog with his tightly cut hair and short, thick neck. And he talks just like he looks. He's gruff, speaking in quick, clipped sentences. His passion is evident and his straight-to-the-point style is his greatest political advantage. It also occasionally gets him into trouble, say fellow senators. Buttars is a lawmaker who doesn't avoid controversy, he starts it. And that stems from his view that those who oppose his morals have captured control of the country. That despite the fact that the White House, Congress, and a majority of state legislatures and governors are Republicans. Most Supreme Court justices also are appointees of GOP presidents. "I don't think the conservative side of the aisle understands incrementalism and the liberal side does, and that is one way we got beat," he said. He calls the 1960s the "apex of American experience" that has since been slowly eroded by anti-war activists, Democrats and gay people. "The [government] has become totally hostile to moral and religious ideals," he said. And the self-proclaimed "floor warrior" has anointed himself the protector of those ideals. "We can always count on him to support the moral issues," said Gayle Ruzicka, president of the Eagle Forum, a conservative morals organization. Since Buttars became a senator, he has formed a philosophical bond with Ruzicka, one of the more influential lobbyists on Capitol Hill. The two have teamed up on Buttars' controversial proposals now working their way through the Legislature. The Senate preliminarily approved Buttars' evolution legislation Friday and is expected to formally pass it Monday. He believes science teachers overstep their bounds by linking men to chimpanzees, while ignoring other possible theories. The vast majority of scientists disagree with his take on evolution. "Evolution of species is one of the generally accepted theories in science," said Larry Madden, president of the Utah Science Teachers Association. Other major science organizations agree with the Utah association, such as the National Academy of Sciences, the National Science Teachers Association and the American Association for the Advancement of Science, which publishes the respected journal Science. Buttars still says legitimate scientists have credible disagreements about the evolution of man. "The scientific community is not in consensus on any of it," he said. Buttars relishes such confrontations, but no issue gets him going like gay rights. At the Eagle Forum convention earlier this month, Buttars spoke at length about his views on gay people. "They're everywhere. They're getting into everything," he said. "The homosexual community is going to undermine society." He wants to rid Utah high schools of the 14 or so Gay-Straight Alliances, which he considers "conditioning" clubs, bent on teaching "impressionable minds" that being gay is acceptable. "If you read the homosexual rule book, you'll find their greatest target is your kids," Buttars told the Eagle Forum crowd. Sen. Scott McCoy, D-Salt Lake City, calls Buttars "misinformed and misguided." As Utah's only openly gay senator, McCoy is offended by Buttars' claim that gay people have no morals. "He has the inability to see gay and lesbian people as the family next door," he said. "For some reason, his mind fixates on 'Oh my god, what kind of sex are you having?' It's absurd." McCoy, a lawyer who publicly battled Buttars' gay marriage ban, argues the federal Equal Access Act protects such gay support groups. And he said these clubs are not discussing sex acts. "Part of it is to stop harassment, part of it is to end the isolation of these students," McCoy said. Buttars said he is now the target of a "gay conspiracy" because of his stand against gay rights. Some of the same people behind the shadowy political action committee Truth in Politics, which led a smear campaign against Salt Lake County Republicans last year, have turned their attention to Buttars. Craig Tassainer and Lance Peacock, upset over Buttars' push to ban gay marriage, have made repeated claims that Buttars used the Utah Boys Ranch, a nonprofit school for troubled youth, for politics in a way that violated federal tax law. Buttars recently retired as the school's executive director. But their formal complaints have gone nowhere. Despite the long-standing animosity, Buttars said he has "homosexual friends," though he refuses to name any. He stops short of calling McCoy a friend, but says he "respects" him. "That man stands up for what he believes in." That's a change from when Buttars first heard that McCoy had been appointed to fill a vacant spot in the Senate. He reacted incredulously, saying "the gay?" McCoy now has a personalized license plate memorializing Buttars' quote. They both find it amusing. "Sen. Buttars and I get along very well," McCoy said. "Probably 85 percent of the time on issues, we are on the same page." Many of these are social issues involving minorities, the poor or drug addicts. One thing his supporters and detractors agree on is that Buttars has no ulterior motives. He is pushing a political agenda out of conviction - not to gain power or prestige. "He is courageous," said Provo Republican Sen. Curt Bramble. "Whether you agree with him or disagree with him, you have to respect his passion." Buttars' wife, Helen, is not too interested in the controversy, contention and phone calls that her husband's political stands attract. For his wife's sake, Buttars will not run for any leadership posts in the Senate and says he will not seek re-election when his term ends in 2008. He is already dreaming of going on an LDS Church mission with his wife. But before then, Buttars has a few remaining moral issues he wants to tackle. His "to do" list includes three items, though Buttars refuses to identify them. He does make one promise: "They will be as hot as anything I've done." mcanham@sltrib.com --Tribune Reporter Patty Henetz contributed to this article. Buttars outside the Legislature * He reads one classic book each summer, though he doesn't always like them. * He built the large stone fireplace that anchors his home office. * Since he retired, he enjoys an afternoon movie on a Monday when he and his wife can have the whole theater to themselves

2007 HB236 Student Club Amendment Bill – ALERT Dear Community Member: Legislation to limit student clubs is back.  HB236 Student Clubs Amendments sponsored by Rep. Tilton is on the House Education Committee agenda tomorrow morning at 8:00am in Room W135. Equality Utah opposes HB236.  This bill places extensive application requirements on student clubs adding a significant burden to students and teachers.  It also allows school administrators to subjectively approve or deny student clubs based on an administrator’ s interpretation of what is socially inappropriate.  Subjective laws serve no real purpose.  In addition, HB236 is unnecessary since current Federal and State law regulates student clubs. A copy of the bill can be found with our briefing paper on this bill.  We encourage you to notify committee members of your position on HB236. Join us tomorrow evening for our OUT for Equality event from 5:30 – 7:00pm at the New Yorker.  Our special guests Sen. Scott McCoy, Rep. Jackie Biskupski and Rep. Christine Johnson will be giving us an update from The Hill.  Thank you for your support during the legislative session.  Working for a fair & just Utah, Mike Thompson Executive Direct


2017 Deseret News SALT LAKE CITY — In the weeks before he died, prominent Utah restaurateur John Williams sought legal protection for himself and his property as he claimed his estranged husband became increasingly volatile and violent. He didn't think it would do much good. According to recently unsealed court documents obtained by the Deseret News, Williams claimed Craig Crawford, 48, was deteriorating mentally and emotionally, becoming a risk to Williams' property and a danger to those around him. But on the same day he requested a protective order, Williams' lawyer filed another document saying Williams didn't believe the order would help. "Mr. Williams has informed me that respondent's mental and emotional state is such that it would be futile to give him notice that we are seeking a temporary restraining order," attorney Ellen Maycock wrote. "We are also concerned that attempting to give notice to respondent will induce him to cause additional damage to the residences that Mr. Williams is seeking to protect." That request was denied, as was a request from Crawford the next week seeking a restraining order against Williams. Williams , 71, was killed nearly three weeks after he filed his request when police say Crawford went to the home they had shared, 574 N. East Capitol St., early on the morning of May 22, 2016, and set fire to the second-floor foyer.

The Williams divorce Williams filed for divorce from Crawford on May 4, 2016, according to court records, and had petitioned for a temporary restraining order against Crawford the next day in an effort to keep Crawford away from residences he owned in Salt Lake City, San Francisco and Vancouver, British Columbia. Court documents in divorce cases are closed under a rule the Utah Judicial Council adopted in 2012 and the Utah Supreme Court then approved. The Deseret News and KSL petitioned the 3rd District Court to unseal the case file, arguing that the public's constitutional right of access to court records is not subservient to a judicial rule. Court Commissioner Michelle Blomquist recently granted the request and opened the file. Those documents provide additional insight into the tension surrounding Williams and Crawford's relationship before Williams' death. The unsealed documents do not, however, reveal why Williams' petition for a protective order was denied by Blomquist. Included in the court filings is a declaration from a housekeeper, Patty Lignell, who knew both men for 15 years. She wrote in a May 18 court declaration that she went to San Francisco on April 28 to take care of the residence there at Williams' request. Crawford was staying at the home. "Craig was behaving irrationally and was making many paranoid remarks. For example, he seemed to think that the TV remote controls had been programmed to harm him. He was throwing them around and breaking them," she wrote. Crawford said "obscene things to me, something he would not ordinarily do," according to Lignell's declaration. The house was a mess with beer bottles and Jack Daniels bottles everywhere, she wrote, adding Crawford was in no condition to maintain it. Crawford insisted Lignell leave. She wrote that she was "somewhat fearful of his behavior" so she left the next day. Williams and Crawford were married in July 2009 in Vancouver, British Columbia, according to Williams' divorce petition. Before their marriage, Williams and Crawford entered into a property agreement. The agreement covered property rights and division, earnings and compensation, debts and obligations, and a deal that neither partner would pay alimony in the event of a divorce. However, according to charging documents, Crawford made "multiple statements" in the past about "how he would be rich when Mr. Williams died" as well as his desire to "set Mr. Williams' home on fire or how he wished the home would burn down." Williams was the president of Gastronomy, which operates the popular Market Street Grill, Market Street Oyster Bar and the New Yorker restaurants. He restored and renovated old buildings, founded the Downtown Alliance and championed the local arts, Salt Lake City's Olympic bid and other community organizations. A previously unsealed search warrant affidavit says Williams met with the Gastronomy information technology manager about May 9 and asked him to "help him with a personal security problem." All the locks and all the codes to the electronic locks on Williams' house were changed, according to the warrant, as well as the code to the house alarm. "All this was done because Williams was fearful of Crawford," the affidavit states. Williams also installed a security camera system that could be accessed by both his cellphone and the IT manager's cellphone.