Former Provo police chief John King, accused of sexual assault by a department volunteer earlier this year, has voluntarily given up his Utah police certification.
King relinquished the certification — which had allowed him to get a Utah law enforcement job — before an investigation into his conduct by the state's Peace Officer Standards and Training Committee (POST) could gain traction. POST did not ultimately compile a report on the case, said Utah Highway Patrol Sgt. Todd Royce, who serves as the committee spokesman.
The committee is charged with disciplining and revoking certifications of police officers who engage in misconduct.
King has moved back to Maryland, records show, where he lived before taking the Provo chief job in 2013. He previously worked for several Maryland police agencies, including the Baltimore Police Department.
King was accused of sexual assault by a woman who was volunteering with the department in late 2016 and early this year. He admitted to investigators that he had sex four times with the woman — but she said the sexual contact was never consensual, according to a Unified Police Department report obtained this week by The Salt Lake Tribune.
She said King made suggestive comments and forced himself on her, and she was scared of him due to his prominent law enforcement position.
Prosecutors ultimately declined to file charges against the chief, saying they lacked sufficient evidence to show a sexual assault had occurred. King resigned from his position in mid-March at the request of Provo's mayor John Curtis, after Curtis learned details of the investigation.
lramseth@sltrib.com
Twitter: @lramseth
| Courtesy Former Provo Police Chief John King
