A portion of St. Lake City Police Detective Jeff Payne’s records have been released as part of the investigation into his violent arrest of Utah University nurse Alex Wubbels after she refused his unlawful orders to draw blood from a patient. It appears this isn’t the first time he’s been in trouble for unwanted advances:
Internal affairs investigations by Salt Lake City police confirmed allegations that Detective Jeff Payne harassed a department employee in a "severe and persistent" way in 2013. It included several incidents of unwanted physical contact and a disparaging email, the records say.
Payne's lawyer, Greg Skordas, said Monday that the reprimand is a problem, but it's only part of Payne's decorated 27-year record with the department.
Payne also faced a vehicle-chase complaint from the Utah Highway Patrol in 1995 that resulted in a two-week suspension without pay, according to the records. The documents didn't detail the complaint but said he violated the police code of ethics on cooperation with other officers and courtesy toward other agencies.
Sounds like a nice guy. Despite it all, is there any doubt he’ll be sitting on a beach sipping piña coladas with his full pension in the not-too-distant future? If Alex Wubbels does decide to sue, isn’t it high time police pension funds are used to pay off these police brutality lawsuits? That might be the only way to send a message.