Fired Tooele police officer made 'false statements,' documents say

TOOELE — Termination documents released this week provide more insight into what led to the firing of two Tooele police officers.

Jorge Cholico, and his wife, Jamie Gutierrez, were fired June 23 following a two-month investigation. Cholico had been serving as a lieutenant over the patrol division and Gutierrez was a detective.

The termination notice given to Gutierrez in June said she was being fired for "violations of departmental policy." The document said Gutierrez was notified of these violations as far back as March 17.

The document states that Gutierrez "violated the Law Enforcement Code of Conduct by acting unprofessionally and by making false statements to an investigator during an official internal investigation."

The joint investigation took place internally.

Because Cholico has appealed the decision, more details on the firing cannot be revealed at this time, Tooele city attorney Roger Baker said in an e-mail to the Deseret News.

Tooele Police Chief Ron Kirby declined to comment about the case until the appeals process has been completed.

— Emiley Morgan