Undersheriff required to attend law academy, POST says paperwork doesn't check out

POLSON — Due to a lapse in law enforcement service, Lake County Undersheriff Karey Reynolds is being required to attend the Montana Law Enforcement Academy to obtain the required certification.

Wayne Ternes, the executive director of Montana Public Safety Officer Standards and Training, or POST, Council, said Reynolds still can serve as Lake County’s undersheriff but is required to return to the Montana Law Enforcement Academy to obtain the necessary training, a 12-week Law Enforcement Basic course, within one year of employment. Reynolds was appointed undersheriff by Doyle on Jan. 11 following Doyle’s election as sheriff in November 2010.

Ternes wrote Lake County Sheriff Jay Doyle a letter to that effect dated May 19. In the letter, Ternes said Ronan Police Chief Dan Wadsworth presented written documents verifying Reynolds’ status with Ronan Police during the period in question.

But, Ternes reconsidered a prior decision regarding Reynolds’ service because he determined that Wadsworth falsified documents for a student sponsored by the Ronan Police Department to attend the Montana Law Enforcement Academy. Wadsworth stated that Ronan Police hired the student when it had not, Ternes’ letter said.

According to state law, a law enforcement officer cannot have more than a 36-month break in service and still maintain certification, Ternes said. Montana POST received a complaint that Reynolds had a break in service exceeding the 36-month requirement.

Ternes investigated and determined that Reynolds’ last year of verifiable work with the Ronan Police Department was 2000.

Last week, Doyle said he planned to write Ternes a letter asking him to reconsider his decision. “I’m requesting they look at the statements he’d given me before.” Doyle related that Ternes initially determined that Reynolds’ time as an peace officer did not lapse due to his time with Ronan as a reserve deputy.

“You can’t require a current reserve to work any particular hours,” Doyle said, citing state law. When asked if Reynolds worked any hours with Ronan since 2000, Doyle replied, “He’s not required to work any shifts if it’s a volunteer status.”

Doyle referred to state law that says a reserve officer serves at the pleasure of the chief law enforcement administrator until he’s given written notice otherwise. “He’s never received anything in writing” from the Ronan Police Department, Doyle said.

Ternes said Doyle is correct about reserve officers, but Ronan records indicate that Reynolds was a part-time officer, and these are treated no differently than full-time officers.

In campaign material from last year’s election, Reynolds said he worked as “a part-time police officer for the city of Ronan until 2008.”

Ternes said Reynolds’ situation is not uncommon. Ternes noted that Lincoln County Undersheriff Brent Faulkner recently was required to attend the Montana Law Enforcement Academy for certification.

In a unrelated matter, a complaint against Doyle from Sept. 20, 2010, was dismissed May 31 by the Montana Commissioner of Political Practices.

The complaint alleged a violation of state law in that Doyle publicly announced his choice for undersheriff prior to the primary and general elections.

Initially, Doyle announced that Mike Sargeant would be his undersheriff, but after Doyle’s victory in the Republican primary, Sargeant withdrew, citing health reasons. Doyle then advertised that Reynolds would be undersheriff if Doyle won the general election.

Reynolds was sworn in as a Lake County reserve deputy by Sheriff Lucky Larson on Nov. 9, 2010.

The decision was signed by Commissioner of Political Practices David Gallik. He said the wording of the state statute in question “prevents any meaningful enforcement ... until the Montana Legislature amends and clarifies” it.

Gallik concurred with a previous commissioner’s decision that the law was “cumbersome and ambiguous at best.”

Gallik concluded the state would have to prove that Doyle promised to appoint Sargeant or Reynolds if they would vote for him for sheriff.

Wadsworth did not return a phone call for this story.