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Amy Fowler to resign from Salt Lake City Council following DUI arrest

Posted at 3:53 PM, May 30, 2023
and last updated 2023-05-30 21:40:24-04

SALT LAKE CITY — Salt Lake City Council member Amy Fowler has announced she will resign her seat following a DUI arrest earlier this month.

In a statement Tuesday, Fowler said her resignation came "after much thought and consideration" and will become effective on July 3.

"Thank you to the residents of District 7 for twice electing me to serve. It has been an honor,” Fowler wrote.

Fowler was arrested May 3 after being involved in an alleged hit-and-run accident before being found sitting in her car with the engine running by a Utah Highway Patrol trooper. The trooper wrote that Fowler's eyes were red and bloodshot, and that she smelled of alcohol.

After first refusing to take sobriety tests, she performed one test and failed, and was then placed under arrest with a recorded .111 BrAC.

During a Council meeting days later, Fowler apologized and said she was taking the matter seriously on a "personal level," and that it had been an eye-opening experience in regards to her "relationship with alcohol" and decisions that she had made.

She later told the Council that she would step back from public duties for 30 days.

Fowler first took office on the Council in 2018 and won reelection in 2021.

The City Council issued a statement Tuesday evening, expressing support for Fowler's decision to resign:

"We know this was a difficult decision and we trust it was made with the best interests of District 7 constituents and her personal wellbeing at heart. We thank Amy for her years of dedicated service to our City and wish her the best in her future endeavors."

The statement also explained that the council will appoint a replacement within 30 days after Fowler's resignation takes effect (July 3). Then in November, voters will choose a candidate to serve the remaining two years of Fowler's term.