Former Blackwater guard gets badge suspended in Utah

ST. GEORGE — A West Valley man accused of participating in a massacre of unarmed Iraqi civilians has had his police-officer status suspended.

The Utah Peace Officer Standards and Training Council voted unanimously Monday to suspend Donald W. Ball's special-function-officer certification until 2010 for allegations of assault stemming from a fight with his girlfriend.

An investigative summary released by the POST Council said West Valley police were called to Ball's home on a report of a fight. The report claimed that Ball had been drinking with his girlfriend when they got into an argument and decided to drive home. Ball stopped at a fast-food restaurant, and when his girlfriend requested ketchup, the report claims, he threw the packets at her face.

"After Ball arrived at his home, his girlfriend started hitting him," POST investigator Paul Kotter wrote. "Ball grabbed his girlfriend by the neck and pushed her away. After escaping his grasp, Ball's girlfriend called the police."

Ball was never arrested, nor was he charged by the city prosecutor because of possible self-defense issues, the report said. Ball was employed by the Salt Lake County Constable's Office as a bailiff and resigned after being questioned by POST investigators on Dec. 10, the report states.

Ball, 26, is one of five former guards for the private security contractor Blackwater Worldwide who are accused of killing 14 unarmed Iraqis and wounding 20 others in September 2007. He has been indicted by a federal grand jury in Washington, D.C., on manslaughter charges. Attorneys for the guards have claimed they were under attack and defending themselves.

E-mail: bwinslow@desnews.com