A federal judge has ordered Utah Rep. Phil Lyman to appear in court after prosecutors say he repeatedly ignored requests to hand over his tax records.
A district judge says U.S. marshals are prepared to arrest Lyman should he be found in contempt of court. Lyman agreed to pay $100 per month for a 2015 misdemeanor crime, but a court in 2019 ordered he provide tax documents to determine if the payment should increase. The state rep’s current rate of payment would only cover a quarter of his debts before they would be nullified. Lyman alleges he is being singled out in a backroom deal between judges and environmentalists.