Layton mayoral candidate Trevor Lee Foust is facing four misdemeanor charges filed by the city, which could create a conflict of interest if he is elected.

The mayor of Layton plays a shared role with the city council and city manager in providing oversight and can offer input on budgeting for the agencies — the Layton Police Department and Layton city attorney’s office — who are currently prosecuting Foust for allegedly making a threat against his wife.

He has pleaded not guilty, and his attorney said he is confident the charges will be dismissed.

If the charges are not dismissed and Foust is elected on Nov. 4, being prosecuted by the city “certainly could be a conflict of interest,” Layton City Attorney Clinton Drake said in an interview Thursday. Foust’s next court appearance is scheduled for Nov. 25.

Foust declined to comment to The Salt Lake Tribune on the charges or the potential for a conflict of interest if he is elected.

The charges stem from a 911 call made by Foust’s wife on the evening of July 9, 2025, about a month after Foust declared his candidacy. Her husband, she told law enforcement at the time, threatened her in the presence of their children during a domestic dispute, according to a police report.

A document provided to The Tribune by Foust, which he said his wife signed before a notary, states that she wants to “correct” her statement to police, that she now says their children did not hear or witness threatening behavior, and she wants the charges dismissed.

Foust is not accused of causing any physical harm to anyone. He is charged with one count of making a threat of violence, and three counts of commission of domestic violence in the presence of children — however, the Cohabitant Abuse Procedures Act’s definition of “domestic violence” includes threats. There are no allegations of physical violence in the charges.

All four counts against Foust are Class B misdemeanors, which are punishable upon conviction by up to six months in jail.

Branson K. West, Foust’s attorney, said he could not comment on the charges against his client prior to trial. “What I can say is we don’t anticipate a conviction in this case,” West said Thursday. “In fact, having gone through it with him, we anticipate all charges are going to be dismissed.”

Foust was charged July 10. In the Aug. 12 mayoral primary, he came in second to incumbent Mayor Joy Petro, and they are both on the general election ballot. (Layton’s municipal primaries are nonpartisan; the top two candidates advance regardless of party affiliation.)

Early voting in the state’s municipal elections has already begun. Petro did not respond to a request for comment.

Prosecutors decide whether to file criminal charges and continue to assess the strength of cases as evidence is developed. The statement from Foust’s wife was not in the court record Friday afternoon.

“We certainly understand the victim has expressed that she doesn’t want to participate,” Drake said. “It’s not unusual for that to happen in cases involving domestic violence.”

The responsibility of his office, he said, “is to review the evidence and proceed based on what the law and the facts will support, and this case is being handled in the same way that we handle all of our domestic violence matters. We treat the victim with respect and we focus on accountability and safety.”

West, Foust’s attorney, asked prosecutors in a July 14 filing to provide him with an inventory of anything taken from a searched vehicle, as well as the results of an intoxilyzer test.

Layton police, however, said they never searched a vehicle or performed an intoxilyzer test as part of their investigation. Asked why the requests were included in court documents, West said he had no comment.

Other than providing documents to The Tribune, Foust wrote in an email, “My only additional comment is that there was no alcohol involved, nor is there any proof that I was drinking.”

One of the documents provided by Foust accused the city attorney’s office of misconduct. It referred to a Facebook post made by paralegal for the city attorney’s office. In the document, Foust said the post had been deleted but had “accused” him “of dishonesty and ‘spreading propaganda.’”

Drake, the city attorney, said Friday that his office investigated the complaint and the post, which he said was made by the employee on her personal account and not during work hours, and determined there was no misconduct.

While a mayor being prosecuted by the city could create a conflict of interest, “that’s not the case at this point, and so we haven’t made that assessment,” he said.

In the event that a conflict of interest arises for the city prosecutor’s office, Drake said, “we just ask for help from neighboring agencies. So in the case of, for example, a prosecution, it would just be referred to a different agency that prosecutes.”

Drake also noted that the city’s mayor does not have direct oversight over the police department. The Layton mayor, he explained, sits on the city council, but only votes if there is a tie between the council members. The council determines agency budgets, although, he said, the mayor may weigh in on council decisions.

Additionally, Drake said that under Layton city ordinances, department heads, such as the city attorney or chief of police, “shall be appointed or removed by the city manager with the advice and consent of the mayor and the city council.”

Lt. Clint Bobrowski with Layton Police shared a police report summary with The Tribune after it filed an open-records request. He said the department had no comment on the case and noted Foust is presumed innocent until proven guilty.