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One month into a federal government shutdown, tens of thousands of the poorest Utahns will go through November without the aid that ensures they have access to groceries.

The state’s all-Republican top elected officials announced Thursday that Utah will give as much as $4 million — half a million each week — to supplement the Utah Food Bank until the government reopens and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program resumes.

But before mentioning the funding increase, a news release from Gov. Spencer Cox, Senate President Stuart Adams and House Speaker Mike Schultz made clear who they believe is to blame, saying the state is responding to an “ongoing Democratic government shutdown.”

The message follows a trend of partisan finger-pointing across the country as the lowest-income Americans head toward Thanksgiving uncertain about where they might get food.

And Utah Republicans’ statement comes as more Americans blame the GOP than the congressional minority for the nearly monthlong shutdown, according to a Washington Post-ABC News-Ipsos poll.

SNAP funding stopped

The U.S. Department of Agriculture, which administers the SNAP program, initially said it would use contingency funds to ensure SNAP recipients continued to receive their benefits despite the government shutdown, but the agency recently reversed course.

Announcing it will not issue benefits Nov. 1, USDA placed a bold note at the top of its website telling visitors — while using anti-immigrant and anti-transgender language — the absence of SNAP benefits is the fault of U.S. Senate Democrats.

“We are approaching an inflection point for Senate Democrats,” the federal agency wrote. “They can continue to hold out for healthcare for illegal aliens and gender mutilation procedures or reopen the government so mothers, babies, and the most vulnerable among us can receive critical nutrition assistance.”

The USDA’s comments followed a slew of federal agencies under President Donald Trump’s administration sharing messages earlier this month condemning Democrats for the funding lapse, and prompting accusations of violations of the Hatch Act, which bars federal employees from engaging in partisan politics.

“While Utah works to support its citizens,” state officials said in the release, “Democrats in Congress continue playing political games, putting working families at risk, hurting veterans, workers and communities nationwide, leaving essential personnel unpaid and critical services unfunded.”

Some blue states have shared messages placing responsibility for the SNAP pause on the White House, and more than two dozen Democratic governors and attorneys general are suing the Trump administration for suspending the food benefits. A federal judge was expected to issue a ruling Thursday, but indicated she believes the federal government should at least partially fund the program.

Beyond the politicized pronouncement, it’s unclear where Utah is pulling the attached extra funding for food banks from, and when such a disbursement was approved. When spokespeople for the governor’s office, the Senate and the House of Representatives were asked Thursday, only a representative for the governor responded.

“The Legislature and the Governor have allocated $500,000, with the Utah Legislature committing up to an additional $3.5 million — $500,000 per week, or until the federal government reopens,” Cox’s spokesperson wrote.

The Utah Food Bank brings in millions annually, and the majority of its revenue is through contracts with government entities. Lawmakers, earlier this year, approved a law allowing Utahns to contribute part of their tax return to the food bank.

Former state Rep. Brian King, now the chair of the Utah Democratic Party, suggested the Republican trio turn their attention to influencing Utah’s federal delegation and other members of their own party to take action to end the shutdown.

“Republicans control the Senate, Congress, and the White House. All six members of the Utah delegation are Republicans,” King wrote in a statement. “Instead of using taxpayer resources to disclaim responsibility, I recommend Governor Cox, Speaker Schultz, and President Adams demand that Trump and their buddies in Congress come to the negotiating table, end the shutdown, and stop holding crucial food assistance hostage. This is entirely a crisis of their own making.”

The government, as of Thursday, has been shut down for 30 days.

‘Completely separate buckets’

At the heart of the closure is a fight over health care funding. Senate Democrats have refused to cross the aisle and vote for a short-term continuing resolution unless Republicans agree to extend enhanced premium tax credits that help millions of Americans — and thousands of Utahns — pay for Affordable Care Act health insurance.

Members of Utah’s congressional delegation have consistently blamed Democrats for the shutdown throughout October, as well as for the expiration of the enhanced subsidies, as Democrats were in control of Congress when the tax credits were expanded in 2021.

“The Democrats put the expiration date on them because they were temporary, and now all of a sudden it’s Republicans’ fault that they’re expiring,” Sen. John Curtis said earlier this month.

Several other members of Utah’s congressional delegation have also placed blame for the shutdown on Democrats.

Rep. Blake Moore, of the 1st Congressional District, has also blamed Democrats and said the minority’s demands are inappropriate in the context of a government funding conversation.

“When we talk about a shutdown, we’re talking about 12 specific appropriations bills,” he said earlier this month. “None of them dictate what goes on with the Affordable Care Act. … You can’t solve [the] Obamacare debate discrepancy within an appropriations bill. They’re two completely separate buckets of funding.”

Republicans currently have control of all three branches of government.

Democrats have pushed back against the decision to cut off SNAP funding.

On Wednesday, congressional Democrats introduced legislation to extend SNAP funding despite the shutdown, and party leaders have accused President Donald Trump of “weaponizing hunger” by refusing to tap into contingency funds to pay for the program.

“The Republicans have been on a crusade against SNAP all year,” Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer of New York said this week. “They slashed it by $200 billion this summer to pay for their tax cuts for billionaires. So they’ve never wanted SNAP, and they don’t want it now. Again, they’re using these 40 million innocent people as pawns.”

Republicans rejected the proposal to expedite SNAP funding. Senate Majority Leader John Thune of South Dakota called the bill “a cynical attempt to provide political cover” and said Democrats should vote to reopen the government if they want funding dispersed.

“We’re not going to let them pick winners and losers,” Thune said Wednesday. “It’s time to fund everybody.”

Being in his ninth season in the NBA, it finally seems Lauri Markkanen has become hellbent on establishing himself as one of the most versatile power forwards in the league, someone who can leverage his size to score effortlessly from the perimeter as well as in the paint.

And from what Lou Williams has witnessed from the initial days of the 2025-26 season, he is convinced that Markannen deserves a chance to compete for a championship. In fact, Lou pleaded for Lauri to be traded before or at the 2026 deadline, emphasizing that now his game is fully developed, making him a truly reliable force for a real contender.

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Williams wants Markkanen to be traded out of the Utah Jazz

So far, the Utah Jazz have managed to win two of their first four games in the 2025-26 season, but the roster clearly lacks the star power or depth to compete with better-knit teams, as their success is mainly reliant on a handful of players.

Nevertheless, Markkanen has been the brightest spot for the Jazz as he not only became the first player after Karl Malone to drop a 50-point game, but over four games, he has recorded a scoring average of 34.0 points.

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That is why Williams boldly suggested that it is time for such a great player not to be good on a bad team, but rather to ensure his production gets the limelight it deserves – something that can only happen if the seven-foot forward brings himself to a solid playoff contender in the East or West.

“I hope he gets traded on the deadline. I just feel like he deserves to be on a playoff-contending team, and now that the Utah Jazz has some young pieces, they can kinda restart and rebuild around,” Williams said on an episode of the “Run It Back” show. “This is the time for Lauri to go somewhere else.”

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Can Lauri achieve success with the Jazz?

Indeed, the Jazz doesn’t have the experience or firepower to go toe-to-toe with proven championship teams like the Golden State Warriors, the Denver Nuggets, or the Oklahoma City Thunder.

However, what they do possess is boldness and hunger. With Markkanen’s offensive prowess leading the charge, even young guard Keyonte George is averaging 22.3 points per game, with Walker Kessler posting a double-double with 17.0 points per night and Brice Sensabaugh making impactful contributions off the bench. Safe to say that the Jazz have quietly assembled an intriguing young core.

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Sure enough, they might not be ready to contend for a title just yet, but they have enough talent to play the role of dark horses in the Western Conference, even in the 2025-26 season. That said, the bigger question looms: will Markkanen truly believe that this Jazz team can make meaningful progress, or will he eventually seek a move to a more established franchise where he can maximize his prime years chasing championships?

Given his current form and mindset, the Finnish big man will give his current team a chance before forcing his way out.

This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Nov 1, 2025, where it first appeared in the Off The Court section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

WARNING: This article contains descriptions of domestic violence and/or child abuse. If you suspect child abuse or neglect, contact the DCFS 24/7 hotline: 855-323-3237. For more information, visit dcfs.utah.gov.

FILLMORE, Utah (ABC4) — An instructional assistant in the Millard School District has been arrested for striking an 8-year-old student, according to the Millard County Sheriff’s Office.

Melissa Diane Davis, 56, has been charged with abuse of a child with a disability, a third-degree felony.

Court documents report that Davis lost her job over the incident.

Growing childcare crisis in Utah impacts parents and teachers

According to law enforcement, on Oct. 28, a video was taken of Davis hitting an 8-year-old, non-verbal student with an open hand. Court documents state that the student was struck multiple times on the arm, torso, and possibly the head.

A witness to the situation reported that Davis told the student that if he hit her, she would hit him back. The video shows the student hitting Davis, and then Davis hitting the suspect back multiple times.

Court documents state that another witness said she had seen Davis strike the student multiple times prior to this incident.

Davis has been booked into the Millard County Jail on the aforementioned charges.

Charges are allegations only. All arrested persons are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

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SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4) — A West Jordan man’s 2024 conviction of 25 sex-related crimes dating back decades has been overturned by the Utah Supreme Court.

On Feb. 14, 2024, Jamison Smith, 50, was found guilty of 25 sex-related crimes, including one count of aggravated sexual abuse of a child and five counts of felony rape, among others.

Decades-old allegations

Charges claim that beginning in 2008, Smith regularly abused an underage female relative. During the case, it was revealed that there may have been other victims of abuse dating back to 1988.

“There wasn’t even a specific crime for sexual abuse of a child in the 80s,” Clayton Simms, a local defense attorney unrelated to the case, told ABC4.com

Later on, charges were filed against Smith, leading to a conviction in 2024.

After the conviction, Smith appealed the decision, claiming that the court made an error by leaving an issue involving the statute of limitations up to the jury rather than the judge.

Statute of limitations

“There was a different statute of limitations back in the day,” Simms said, adding that the case required a decision be made on whether or not the charges were time sensitive to be prosecuted.

Since 2008, the State of Utah has had no statute of limitations on sex-related crimes, meaning such crimes could be prosecuted indefinitely regardless of how long ago the crimes were committed.

Smith argued that at the time of the offense, the statute of limitations was in place.

“They are arguing that once a minor informs law enforcement, prosecution must begin within one year,” Simms said. “The statute of limitations was triggered.”

Family of man killed during No Kings protest announces intent to file lawsuit

“”It’s based on what statute of limitations was in effect at the time of the crime,” Simms added, “The argument that was presented to the court is that is that it’s a year from when it was disclosed to law enforcement.”

Records show one victim may have reported the abuse after being taken out of class in seventh grade. Smith argues this qualifies as a report to law enforcement, meaning the deadline to press charges against him ended in 1989. Records show charges were filed in 2022.

The Supreme Court says that the burden of determining this issue of a statute of limitations falls on the judge presiding over the case. However, during the trial, the determination was left up to the jury.

“We reverse and remand for the district court to complete that determination,” the Supreme Court order reads, requiring the judge to decide whether or not the statute of limitations was met.

Simms says the ruling will require a retrial in district court. Smith is expected to remain in prison on multiple sex-crime related convictions for different cases.

How to make ABC4 your preferred news source on Google

Notably, Simms added that the retrial may cause some difficulties, because it has been so long since the crime occurred.

“It is difficult for the defendant to defend himself, because the alibi witness might be lost, witnesses’ memories may have faded,” Simms said, “In fact, you may not remember where you were in 1980, 1988, on a specific day.”

On the other hand, it may be difficult to connect Smith or other defendants to a decades-long crime, because the victim or prosecution witnesses that were available during the original trial may not be available for the retrial.

This is a developing story. ABC4 will update this post as more information becomes available.

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The site of a future homeless services campus at 2520 N. 2200 West in Salt Lake City is pictured with I-215 in the foreground on Wednesday, Sept. 3, 2025. (Photo by Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch)

As Utah has garnered national attention for Republican state leaders’ eagerness to fulfill President Donald Trump’s executive order titled “Ending Crime and Disorder on America’s Streets,” Gov. Spencer Cox says their vision for a yet-to-be built 1,300-bed homeless campus in northwest Salt Lake City is a “top priority.” 

Plans for the campus are still taking shape. But the state’s top homelessness leaders have proposed including hundreds of beds for people who are civilly committed — or court ordered into mental health treatment. They also envision an “accountability center” or a “secure residential placement facility” for substance abuse treatment as an alternative to jail, where people who are “sanctioned” to go there would not be able to leave voluntarily. 

Pushing back against criticisms from some Democrats and homeless advocates likening the proposal to a “prison” for the homeless, Cox on Wednesday said state leaders are intent on trying something new — because, he said, so far current efforts to reduce homelessness haven’t worked. 

“Look, everything we’ve been doing has been a complete and abject failure,” Cox told Madison Mills, a reporter at Axios who questioned the governor about state leaders’ approach to homelessness during a summit focused on housing issues. 

“This isn’t just, you know, holding people against their will. It’s getting them the help and the support that they need,” Cox said. 

The governor also balked at a quote in a New York Times article published Wednesday in which a woman experiencing homelessness compared a rendering of the homeless campus to a “concentration camp.” 

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“This idea that it’s, you know, compared to Nazi Germany … I just, I don’t understand that level of thinking,” he said. “It’s just crazy to me. I mean, as if, you know, Hitler were to, what, round up people who are dying on the streets in their own filth addicted to drugs and giving them the support they need? Like, there is no comparison — at all.”

The ‘sea change’ happening in Utah

Earlier this year, the governor said a “sea change” in Utah’s homeless system was coming — one that emphasized cracking down on camping and drug use while also increasing drug and mental health treatment. But at the time he also acknowledged the state would need more jail and treatment beds to make it happen. 

Wednesday, Cox said “compassion” is not “allowing people to die on our streets” and letting public places become unsafe for them and others. “There is no compassion in that, at all.” 

“So what we have to do is provide the services that people need, and we have to hold people accountable,” he said. “This is the social order. You don’t get to just camp wherever you want to camp. That can’t be a thing.” 

In the past, as state and local leaders have tried to crack down on public camping, it’s often resulted in pushing people experiencing homelessness around rather than into shelter. For years, the state’s homeless shelters have been maxed out. The planned 1,300-bed homeless campus has been proposed to also bolster the state’s homeless shelter capacity during a time when the state’s homeless population continues to rise. 

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“If you don’t have a place to stay, then we will give you a place to stay. That’s what we’re doing,” Cox said. “What we’re talking about is a small group of people who are unsheltered and who won’t take help, won’t go to a shelter, and are breaking lots of other laws. And that very small population, we have to help them. … When you’ve got a needle in your arm or you’re on meth or fentanyl or whatever it is, you can’t make rational decisions.” 

Cox said today’s laws “don’t allow us to help people get to a point where they can do that,” and that needs to change. 

What will Utah do to fulfill Trump’s executive order?

Trump’s executive order directs the U.S. attorney general to “seek, in appropriate cases, the reversal of Federal or State judicial precedents and the termination of consent decrees that impede the United States’ policy of encouraging civil commitment of individuals with mental illness who pose risks to themselves or the public or are living on the streets and cannot care for themselves in appropriate facilities for appropriate periods of time.” 

The order also directs the attorney general to assist state and local governments “through technical guidance, grants, or other legally available means,” to implement “maximally flexible civil commitment, institutional treatment, and ‘step-down’ treatment standards.” 

It’s not yet clear how Utah will specifically act when it comes to civilly committing more people. But in answering a call from Cox and top Republican legislative leaders urging action to “fulfill” Trump’s executive order, the Utah Homeless Services Board recently wrote in a letter it would “coordinate with the White House” to explore “becoming a pilot for the rest of the country on how to deploy an exhaustive treatment-focused intervention that is dignified, humane, and efficacious.” 

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Though Utah’s plans are still taking shape publically, Cox said there “are a lot of blue state governors who are looking at what we’re doing right now,” and he argued that finding a new approach to homelessness is “not a red state, blue state thing.” 

“Everybody knows what they’ve done has been a failure,” Cox said. “Go to any major city in this country, and you will see how we’ve failed as a society and how we’ve failed to protect the most vulnerable amongst us.” 

But there are still many details surrounding the so-called “transformative” homeless campus that need to be sorted out — including how the expensive project will be funded. It’s expected to cost more than $75 million to build, plus north of $34 million a year in ongoing funding to operate. 

Some, including Democrats and homeless providers, have expressed concerns that for the homeless campus to be a success, it will require even more money — and need to be fully funded. And they’ve said if Utah’s current homeless shelters and other resources like deeply affordable housing, substance use treatment, mental health treatment, and jail capacity were funded more substantially, perhaps the state wouldn’t have as acute homeless problems as it does today. 

Republican state leaders including Cox, however, have said they want the state’s homeless system to move away from “Housing First” policies that they say “lack accountability.” Currently, federal “Housing First” grants are prioritized to providers who use that approach, which national homeless advocates have defended as an evidence-based and effective solution to homelessness. 

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Housing First is an approach that calls for providing housing without first requiring the person to address other problems such as mental health issues or substance abuse, as other approaches to homelessness do. Advocates say providing supportive services to address such problems is easier in a safe and stable housing situation.

But earlier this year, the Utah Legislature passed a resolution — sponsored by Rep. Tyler Clancy, R-Provo, whom Cox on Thursday appointed as the state’s new homeless coordinator — urging the federal government to change federal homelessness regulations. 

That included a request to “rescind housing first policy mandates to permit flexibility” for housing options that “meet the diverse needs and preferences of families experiencing homelessness, including sobriety, goal-setting, and accountability.” 

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It’s possible Utah leaders may rely on some amount of federal funding to help build the homeless campus — but that remains to be seen. Otherwise, state leaders will need to prioritize funding in the state budget. 

How will the campus be funded?

When asked about funding for the homeless campus after Wednesday’s housing summit, Cox told reporters he’s “in talks with the Legislature right now.” 

“We know it’s going to be a tight budget year, but this has to be my top priority. It is my top priority,” he said. “We’re also working with the federal government and hopeful that they’ll see the wisdom in this, and they expressed interest in helping these types of projects.” 

The governor said the campus could be a “collaborative project together” with the federal government. But if not, “I’m going to be looking at my budget — where can we cut back? What can we do?” 

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He said he doesn’t think the state has the option to do nothing. 

“We have to get this right,” he said. “We’ve been failing for so long and I’m not willing to give up.”

Cox acknowledged, however, that without money, the effort could hit a dead end. 

“Nothing happens,” he said, “if we don’t get the funding.” 

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