SALT LAKE CITY — Charges were filed Wednesday against a Salt Lake City Police Department officer who is accused of sexual battery that occurred while in the workplace.
Jeffrey Kevin Loosle, 52, faces two counts of sexual battery, a class A misdemeanor.
Court documents state that a woman was attending a work training session in May when she "felt a hard slap on her butt, which jolted her body."
She turned around and saw Loosle behind her, making direct eye contact with her, documents report.
The woman said she was slapped again on the butt with "an unknown object," charging documents state.
The next day, documents report, the woman confronted Loosle with another colleague and he did not deny slapping her, saying he "needed to get her attention."
A week later, the woman's husband said Loosle reached out to him and apologized to him. Loosle told the husband he thought of his wife as "'one of the guys' and admitted to smacking her with a boxing glove," documents state.
In an interview with a Unified Police Department detective, Loosle said he used a boxing glove to get the woman's attention and he was unsure where it touched her.
Chief Mike Brown sent a memo to employees on Wednesday alerting them of the investigation and charges.
In the memo, he said the officer was placed on administrative leave during the investigation which was conducted by an outside agency.
"It is essential our workplace remains safe, inclusive and respectful for everyone. When allegations of wrongdoing arise, our department will handle them appropriately and with great care," the memo reads in part.
"As employees of the Salt Lake City Police Department, we hold ourselves to the highest standards," Brown said in the email. "It is our responsibility to reflect our core values in our day-to-day actions."
