POST Council sanctions 8 former Utah police officers

SANDY — Douglas L. Paulsen spent nearly 20 years protecting the people of West Valley City as a police officer. Now, he'll never work in law enforcement again in Utah.

Paulsen, who faces possible prison time when he's sentenced March 30 for sending sexually explicit images to someone he thought was a 15-year-old boy, was one of eight former officers disciplined Monday by the Utah Peace Officer Standards and Training Council.

In Paulsen's case, the council accepted a signed consent agreement for a lifetime revocation of his police officer certification. The body also accepted consent agreements for lifetime revocations from former Utah Department of Corrections officer Joan M. Hill and former Tooele County sheriff's deputy Shawn R. Borba.

Hill, a corrections officer for 10 years, was disciplined for kissing a prison inmate and then lying to investigators about the contact, according to a POST summary of her case. Borba, a sheriff's deputy for six years, was sanctioned for having a sexual relationship with a married woman while he was on duty and while her husband was deployed out of state with the military.

Two other former officers — Nelson P. Tuatagaloa and Zachary R. Bellock — had their certifications revoked for life based on felony convictions.

Tuatagaloa, a former West Jordan police officer, pleaded guilty Feb. 2 to two counts of custodial sexual misconduct, a third-degree felony. The charges stem from a Sept. 30, 2008, incident when Tuatagaloa engaged in nonconsenual sexual activity in his squad car with a woman he was transporting to a hospital for a psychological evaluation.

Bellock, a former Department of Corrections officer, was arrested March 11 following a domestic dispute and booked into the Davis County Jail. While the investigation into that incident was ongoing, authorities learned Bellock was arrested again in July for investigation of burglary and stalking. He pleaded guilty on Aug. 27 in 3rd District Court to felony charges of burglary and stalking and is serving a one-to-15 year prison term.

In addition to the revocations, the POST Council approved suspensions for three other officers.

 Former Midvale police officer Jack Guenon received a six-month suspension. Guenon lied about his qualifications as a drug-recognition expert on search warrant applications and in police reports, according to POST investigators, and lied to city and police officials in Midvale.