SANDY -- The agency that certifies and disciplines all police officers in the state of Utah considered the cases of 13 officers accused of misconduct.
The offenses ranged from falsifying applications and sex on duty to an officer driving drunk in his patrol car with his child along for the ride. Altogether, the Utah Peace Officer Standards & Training Council disciplined 10 officers at its quarterly meeting on Monday.
They are:
- Troy Anderson, who received a 2 1/2 year suspension for a DUI;
- Talisa Black, a former Tooele City police officer whom POST said received a 2-year suspension for assault and domestic violence in the presence of a child related to a family fight;
- Jacob Boehme, a Logan police officer, was given a 6-month suspension by the POST Council for disorderly conduct and a BCI violation stemming from a family fight;
- Charles Crosby, a former Cedar City police officer, was given a 3-year suspension by POST for sex on duty with a woman while he was in uniform;
- Brandon Done, a former Weber State Police Academy Cadet, was given a 2-year suspension for falsifying an application to POST and not disclosing information about prescription drug use in a timely manner;
- Shawnn Hartley, a former police cadet, was given a 2-year suspension for falsifying a POST application for not disclosing a prior use of marijuana in a timely manner;
- Wendy Horlacher, a Utah Dept. of Corrections officer, appeared before the POST Council on a gambling accusation for using her work email to set up a SuperBowl betting pool. POST investigators said she disclosed it to her superior, accepted responsibility and the council took no action against her for it;
- Jared Hughes, a former Sandy police officer, was given an 18-month suspension for a DUI;
- Mark Puett, a former Utah Dept. of Corrections officer, was given a 6-month suspension for criminal mischief related to a hunting incident;
- Jed Imlay, a former Cedar City police officer, was given a 4-year suspension for a DUI with a minor in the vehicle and leaving the scene of an accident. POST investigators said Imlay crashed his patrol car into a barrier with his child in the vehicle and he was intoxicated at the time.
(Three officers' cases were held until March so they could answer the accusations if they chose to do so.)
On Monday, POST told FOX 13 that it had 109 active investigations into allegations of officer misconduct. With nearly 9,000 certified peace officers in the state, the police agency insisted that the number of officers who had their certification suspended or revoked still amounted to less than one percent of the total force.
With recent officer-involved shootings in Utah and across the nation, police officers have faced protests and criticism. POST said in light of events in Ferguson, New York and locally, it would be reviewing its training for cadets on excessive force, conflict resolution and use of less-than-lethal force.
POST Executive Director Scott Stephenson told FOX 13 he supported increasing the number of hours cadets got training on ways to resolve confrontations without drawing guns. Stephenson has already increased training for cadets on dealing with mentally ill people.
"We're being more proactive and so reviewing these use of force situations are very valuable for us as we develop curriculum," he said. "So we can make sure these officers are not only being very compassionate, but also at the same time, protecting themselves."
Stephenson also said POST supported the idea of body cameras for officers, but did express concerns about cost and who maintains the video.
