Post by KC on Apr 29, 2006 21:01:11 GMT -5
04/29/2006 - The Weld District Attorney's Office will not file criminal charges against a Greeley police officer who was accused of unlawful sexual contact earlier this month.
The allegations arose after the officer was drinking at several Greeley bars, while off duty, with several other off-duty cops.
The officer was set to return to work on his regular shift Friday night. He had been on paid administrative leave since the allegations were made in the early morning of April 4. An internal investigation will begin immediately, Police Chief Jerry Garner said.
Garner and Weld District Attorney Ken Buck would not give the name of the officer or the woman who reported the incident. It is the Tribune's policy not to identify people who allege they are victims of sexual assault.
Buck sent a three-page letter Friday afternoon to Garner, describing the allegations and the investigation.
The officer, who is identified as "Officer A," arrived home around 2 a.m. April 4 with another off-duty officer, when a neighbor, who had been celebrating a friend's 21st birthday, invited them over, according to the letter.
He began "playfully wrestling" with a woman, whom the letter only identifies as "Ms. W." The two had attended high school together.
Ms. W. said she voluntarily wrestled with the officer, but then he tried to kiss her and she struggled to prevent it. She also said he pinched her buttocks twice while they were walking inside.
"Officer A denied trying to kiss Ms. W., stating he was married and kissing other women would be 'asinine,'" Buck's letter says.
At least two people, who are also not identified in the letter, said they heard Ms. W. giggling when she was wrestling with the officer, and at one point she said, "Tell him to get off of me," one witness said.
"But the friend thought Ms. W. was joking and she did not hear any panic in Ms. W.'s voice," the letter states.
Ms. W. called the police at 3 a.m. to report the officer, and she spoke to a sergeant. When police interviewed her in person, she had no visible marks that would show she had been pinched.
Buck wrote there is not enough evidence to prove the officer committed unlawful sexual contact, which is a misdemeanor, third-degree assault or false imprisonment, the charges his office investigated.
Ms. W. told police she thought internal sanctions would suffice, rather than criminal charges.
Garner said other officers will interview witnesses again and compile a report, which will be reviewed by Officer A's supervisors and, ultimately, Garner.
The investigation will determine whether there has been misconduct, and if so, what should happen to the officer, Garner said.
"That can range from an oral reprimand to termination, and everything in between," he said.
Misconduct could mean a violation of the department's ethics code, or behavior that embarrasses not only the officer but the city of Greeley, Garner said.
The police ethics code says, in part, "I will keep my private life unsullied as an example to all."
Garner said it could take a couple of weeks to complete the investigation, because scheduling interviews and reviewing reports could take time.
"Our interest is always in getting it done as quick as we can," he said.
The allegations arose after the officer was drinking at several Greeley bars, while off duty, with several other off-duty cops.
The officer was set to return to work on his regular shift Friday night. He had been on paid administrative leave since the allegations were made in the early morning of April 4. An internal investigation will begin immediately, Police Chief Jerry Garner said.
Garner and Weld District Attorney Ken Buck would not give the name of the officer or the woman who reported the incident. It is the Tribune's policy not to identify people who allege they are victims of sexual assault.
Buck sent a three-page letter Friday afternoon to Garner, describing the allegations and the investigation.
The officer, who is identified as "Officer A," arrived home around 2 a.m. April 4 with another off-duty officer, when a neighbor, who had been celebrating a friend's 21st birthday, invited them over, according to the letter.
He began "playfully wrestling" with a woman, whom the letter only identifies as "Ms. W." The two had attended high school together.
Ms. W. said she voluntarily wrestled with the officer, but then he tried to kiss her and she struggled to prevent it. She also said he pinched her buttocks twice while they were walking inside.
"Officer A denied trying to kiss Ms. W., stating he was married and kissing other women would be 'asinine,'" Buck's letter says.
At least two people, who are also not identified in the letter, said they heard Ms. W. giggling when she was wrestling with the officer, and at one point she said, "Tell him to get off of me," one witness said.
"But the friend thought Ms. W. was joking and she did not hear any panic in Ms. W.'s voice," the letter states.
Ms. W. called the police at 3 a.m. to report the officer, and she spoke to a sergeant. When police interviewed her in person, she had no visible marks that would show she had been pinched.
Buck wrote there is not enough evidence to prove the officer committed unlawful sexual contact, which is a misdemeanor, third-degree assault or false imprisonment, the charges his office investigated.
Ms. W. told police she thought internal sanctions would suffice, rather than criminal charges.
Garner said other officers will interview witnesses again and compile a report, which will be reviewed by Officer A's supervisors and, ultimately, Garner.
The investigation will determine whether there has been misconduct, and if so, what should happen to the officer, Garner said.
"That can range from an oral reprimand to termination, and everything in between," he said.
Misconduct could mean a violation of the department's ethics code, or behavior that embarrasses not only the officer but the city of Greeley, Garner said.
The police ethics code says, in part, "I will keep my private life unsullied as an example to all."
Garner said it could take a couple of weeks to complete the investigation, because scheduling interviews and reviewing reports could take time.
"Our interest is always in getting it done as quick as we can," he said.