Sen. Gene Davis removed from assignments; Senate president and Democrats call for resignation

SALT LAKE CITY — Utah Senate President Stuart Adams announced Wednesday morning that Sen. Gene Davis had been removed from committee assignments, effective immediately. The announcement came two months after Adams began an investigation into Davis after sexual harassment claims made by a former intern.

In a press release, a Utah Senate representative said two lawyers familiar with workplace harassment had been retained to investigate Davis. The investigation started after allegations of sexual harassment surfaced in August through an Instagram post made by a former intern.

Adams said in a statement that the investigation found that Davis’ interactions with the intern in question “more likely than not” violated senate policies.

Davis will be removed from all committee assignments. Adams is also encouraging Davis to resign.

Senate Democrats also called for Davis’ immediate resignation.

“This afternoon, we held a caucus meeting, resulting in our call for his immediate resignation from the Senate,” Senate Democrats said in a statement.

The Senate Democrats include Sen. Karen Mayne, Luz Escamilla, Jani Iwamoto, Kathleen Riebe and Derek Kitchen.

“I want to reiterate that the Senate does not and will not tolerate workplace harassment, which is why I directed an independent investigation to evaluate the allegations,” Adams said in the Senate’s press release.

This is a developing story and will be updated.

Related: Attorney for Sen. Gene Davis says Davis won’t resign from the Utah Senate