"That's actually one of the reasons I decided to run," Hallman said. "I was under the impression that if you're in your house and a police officer shows up at your house, you have the right to talk to an attorney."

Initially, the Utah County Attorney's Office said there was not enough evidence to charge Hallman with assault, but a second statement from the flagger gave attorneys enough evidence to file charges against him.

Hallman said he thinks the second statement was provided to cover what he calls "illegal actions" by Paletta. He says the court case was nothing more than an overblown attempt at covering for the trooper.

A UHP spokesman said the incident was investigated.

"There was a complaint filed against the trooper in this incident," spokesman Brian Hyer said. "They looked into it down there (in the Orem UHP office) and found it to not be substantial."

Hallman was charged with third-degree felony aggravated assault and an infraction of failure to obey a peace officer. In April, as part of a plea deal, Hallman pleaded guilty to the failure to obey a peace officer charge and apologized to the flagger in court. He paid a $75 fine for the infraction.

In exchange, the felony assault charged was dropped.

Hallman said the matters of wrongful arrest and what he calls "malicious prosecution" — prosecutors at one point requested a competency evaluation for Hallman — are not resolved.

"I've always been a little bit wary of big government," Hallman said. "There's not much that separates a democracy from tyranny."

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E-mail: jtwitchell@desnews.com