9 candidates file for Salt Lake City mayor

Nine people filed for the Salt Lake City mayoral race by the 5 p.m. deadline Monday, including Centro Civico Mexicano director John Renteria, who plans to run despite being required to wear an ankle monitor for 30 days after his release from jail.

In addition to the eight candidates who had already publicly declared their candidacy, newcomer Quinn Cady McDonough also filed. According to his Web page on the MySpace site, McDonough is a 29-year-old student, and he would like to meet "those who hope for a positive change in the world, hope for a better place, where the hungry are fed, where the sick are cured."

"Help this world in whatever way you can," his MySpace page says. "Be a positive influence."

Monday was the deadline across the state for candidates to file for municipal elected offices.

The other candidates for Salt Lake mayor are House Minority Leader Ralph Becker, D-Salt Lake; Salt Lake City Councilman Dave Buhler; retired engineer Rainer Huck; colorectal surgeon J.P. Hughes; Salt Lake County Councilwoman Jenny Wilson; consultant Robert K. Muscheck; and former Salt Lake City Councilman Keith Christensen.

Renteria, an attorney, was fitted yesterday with an ankle monitor that will allow probation officers to track his movements. He was released from jail June 21 after a 3rd District judge suspended his one-year jail sentence for a probation violation.

Renteria filed for office at about 3:30 p.m. Monday, after consulting with the court to determine how much freedom he would have, he said.

"Essentially, they're working with me to be able to do the things I need to run a decent campaign," he said.

Renteria will be required to be in his home during certain hours, and the ankle monitor will allow probation officers to track his movements. The exact hours he will be required to remain at home will not be determined until next week, when he meets with Adult Probation and Parole officials, but such arrangements usually require the person to be home at night, Renteria said.

He will be able to participate in candidate debates, forums and going door-to-door, Renteria said. He works from a home office and his campaign office also is in his home. He will now start campaigning with a "catch-up strategy" to make up for time lost because of his legal troubles, he said.

Renteria pleaded guilty in November 2005 to attempted failure to stop at an officer's command, driving a car with incorrectly positioned license plates and failure to obey a traffic-control device, all misdemeanors. The sentence for those convictions was a year in jail, but that sentence was suspended in favor of probation.

He landed in jail June 8 after he told the judge he drank alcohol in violation of his probation and had twice driven on a revoked license. The judge sentenced him to a year in jail. However, at a review hearing June 21 attended by more than a dozen Renteria supporters, the judge agreed to release him and place him on an ankle-monitoring system.

Renteria said he looks forward to the campaign because it will give him a chance to address issues facing the city's west side. He has lived in every district in the city and believes that the west side has been largely neglected by city government.

"I would hope people would overlook things that have happened," Renteria said. "The best message I could pass on is that if you're on probation, don't mess up."

In addition to his legal troubles, Renteria has struggled recently with board members at the Centro Civico, who have started the process of removing him from his presidency of the board of directors.

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E-mail: dfelix@desnews.com