HELENA - In a ruling handed down by the Public Safety Officer
Standards and Training (POST) Council in Helena on Tuesday, Ronan police chief
Dan Wadsworth was stripped of certification and given a 15-year suspension from
service for falsifying information about officers from his department.
On Wednesday morning the ruling was confirmed by Allen
Horsfall, the interim executive director of POST, who clarified that the vote
by the Council revokes certificates “from intermediate and above” that
Wadsworth had earned throughout his career. Wadsworth’s basic certificate
remains in place, but has been suspended for 15 years.
“He can’t serve as a peace officer in Montana for 15 years,
effective immediately,” Horsfall clarified.
Horsfall, who became involved with the matter in the middle
of the case, said that Wadsworth was charged with lying about the credentials
of various personnel from the Ronan Police Department.
“According to my attorneys, Dan Wadsworth was suspended
because he falsified the Montana Law Enforcement Academy (MLEA) application of
his son, Trevor Wadsworth, by certifying that Trevor was a sworn law
enforcement officer and employee of the Ronan Police Department, when in fact
he was not,” said Horsfall.
“Wadsworth repeatedly disregarded statutes and regulations
regarding attendance at MLEA when he sent other officers from Ronan to the
academy,” Horsfall continued.
As of Wednesday morning, Wadsworth could not be reached for
comment. It is not yet clear whether Wadsworth intends to appeal the Council’s
decision or not. More information will be added to this story as it becomes
available.