21 officers are disciplined for misconduct

SANDY — The group that certifies and disciplines police officers is making more changes to its guidelines for officers' bad behavior.

During the Utah Peace Officer Standards and Training Council's quarterly meeting on Monday, council members voted to make consensual sexual misconduct on duty and lying to POST or internal affairs investigators offenses that could merit a three-year certification suspension.

That same day, 21 officers were disciplined for various forms of misconduct, ranging from drug use and DUI to sexual misconduct, both on and off duty. Some received suspensions, others had their peace officer certifications revoked.

A few officers challenged the decisions made by POST Council. Former Helper Police Chief George Zamantakis asked the council to reconsider a decision to revoke his peace officer certification. The former police chief acknowledged having an affair with a former secretary and initially lied to POST investigators about it. He did it to protect her privacy, Zamantakis' attorney said.

"I made a mistake and I'm wrong," Zamantakis told the council. "There's a lot of things I wish I'd have done differently."

Zamantakis had the support of his wife, who held his hand as he sat throughout the meeting.