Hildale police officers may face decertification
 State officials say law enforcement, polygamy don't mix
 
By Jennifer Dobner and Nancy Perkins
Deseret Morning News
 
SANDY — State officials will seek to decertify Hildale police officers who are practicing polygamy — including Chief of Police Sam Roundy.

Utah's POST Council, the governing body for the state police academy known as Peace Officer Standards and Training, voted unanimously Wednesday to move forward with an investigation begun last year into the Hildale police department.

"If they're going to look at us for polygamy, they better look at every police officer in the state to see which ones have broken any laws of any kind," Roundy said Wednesday evening. "We're trying to live our religion. How many police officers around the state have stepped out on their wives or committed adultery? That's against the law, too."

Roundy was one of seven officers identified in a June report from the Utah Attorney General's office which said some in the Hildale department had either violated state law or knew of violations, primarily for bigamy. Two officers, including Roundy, are believed to be polygamists, Attorney General Mark Shurtleff said Wednesday.

Polygamy is banned in the Utah Constitution and bigamy is prohibited under state law. Hildale and its sister-city of Colorado City, Ariz., are home to the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, which includes in its tenets the practice of plural marriage.

POST investigators and the attorney general's office began to scrutinize the Hildale police department in December 2003 after officer Rodney Holm was decertified, having been convicted of felony bigamy for taking a 16-year-old girl as his "spiritual wife."

That investigation might not necessarily result in criminal charges, Shurtleff said, but POST can still take action. POST, which trains and certifies all Utah law enforcement, has a range of disciplinary options from simple sanctions, such as suspension, on up to decertification.

Pursuing decertification or disciplinary action against Hildale police could have the effect of eventually gutting the department, Shurtleff acknowledged. Should that occur, the Washington County Sheriff's Office could provide police services to the area until Hildale city leaders replaced the officers, he said.

Over the past two years, Shurtleff's office has shown a renewed interest in prosecuting polygamy, especially in cases like Holm's where underage girls are the victims. But Shurtleff has said he would not persecute adults engaged in sexual relationships outside of marriage, including those who are engaged in plural marriage.

But "police officers have to be held to a higher standard," the attorney general said Wednesday in explaining the investigation.

Roundy and his officers will be asked to voluntarily surrender their badges and certification, Shurtleff said. Should they refuse, a hearing will be held before an administrative law judge. The final step is a review of the information by the council.

It was clear Wednesday that the council believes decertification is the only option. Sworn police officers are required by statute to uphold both the U.S. and Utah constitutions, council members said.

"To me, it's the same as the guy who brings steroids back from Mexico," said Ogden Police Chief John Griener, council vice-chairman. "He steps outside the law."

And that is irrespective of the role that polygamy played in Utah's history, or of the present religious practices of members of the FLDS Church, Griener added. Plural marriage is illegal and police officers should not be excused or exempt, he said.

Shurtleff said some officers may believe they are sworn to uphold the U.S. Constitution but also think the Utah charter violates their right to practice their religion.

Given that, POST executive director Maj. Sid Groll added, there are some officers who would likely not promise to renounce the practice of polygamy just to keep their police certification.

"It's part of their religion. It's part of their lifestyle," said Groll.
 
deseretnews.com
Originally published Thursday, September 23, 2004
 
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