This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2006, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Correction: A story Saturday about the suspension of the police certification of Mica S. Barlow, a Colorado City town marshal, incorrectly stated the date of his release from the Central Arizona Detention Center. He was released Aug. 29.
COLORADO CITY, Ariz. - The agency that certifies peace officers in Utah suspended the license of a Hildale town deputy Thursday, days after the officer submitted his resignation.
Rich Townsend, director of the Utah Peace Officer Standards and Training Academy, said he suspended Mica S. Barlow's certification, a move unanimously ratified by the POST council during a meeting in Logan.
“We're looking at every officer who has been deposed, refused to answer questions or found in contempt of court,” Townsend said. “We're trying to do our best to ensure these officers of the court obey orders of the court.”
Barlow, 36, had been on the force, which also serves the adjoining town of Colorado City, Ariz., since 1998. The two towns are home to the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, a polygamous sect.
Colorado City Town Marshal Fred Barlow notified both Utah and Arizona earlier this week that Mica Barlow had resigned.
The suspension gives Utah POST more time to complete an investigation into whether Barlow violated his duty as an officer and should have his license revoked, Townsend said.
Arizona officials said Thursday they are still looking at revoking Barlow's certification, as well as that of at least two other officers. Those officers may be the marshal and Deputy Sam Johnson, both of whom were uncooperative in depositions related to an investigation of equipment taken from a communal property trust now under court oversight.
Both agencies had notified the force earlier this year about repercussions of failing to cooperate with ongoing legal actions in the community.
Mica Barlow refused in April to testify before a federal grand jury about the whereabouts of Warren S. Jeffs, FLDS church leader.
Barlow and five others were jailed on contempt charges; all were released Aug. 29, after Jeffs' capture.
Townsend said he sent a letter to both the deputy and the marshal saying Barlow's conduct was unacceptable because it “jeopardizes, disrupts or otherwise diminishes the public trust and fidelity in Utah law enforcement.”