Eric Mainord, a Summit County sheriff’s deputy who briefly ran for sheriff in Wasatch County, had at least three formal complaints filed against him during his previous employment with the Heber City Police Department, according to documents provided to The Park Record through a public records request.
Outgoing Wasatch County Sheriff Jared Rigby, who lost the primary election this summer to Wasatch County Director of Emergency Services Jeremy Hales, contacted Summit County officials in January to express concerns about Mainord’s involvement in the Kouri Richins trial. Mainord withdrew from the race on May 27.
Mainord announced his candidacy for Wasatch County sheriff on Jan. 7, and Rigby met with Summit County Sheriff Kacey Bates the following day. Rigby, now under investigation in Summit County for allegedly interfering with a criminal case, brought a list of 13 claims he said would damage Mainord’s credibility, all of which reportedly stemmed from his employment with the Heber City Police Department from 2013 to 2019.
The Park Record obtained documentation of complaints filed against Mainord while he was employed by Heber City through a Government Records Access and Management Act, which showed he was disciplined and placed on probation at least three times while a member of the Heber City Police Department.
On Tuesday, Mainord declined to comment on the complaints filed against him or the ongoing criminal investigation into Rigby’s actions.
A letter from the Police Department dated Aug. 3, 2015, said Mainord had acted in “an abusive manner” toward a citizen and called his behavior “angry, unprofessional (and) rude.” It also said Mainord threatened to cite or arrest the citizen for an incident “that did not occur” and that he “had insufficient evidence for charges.”
Three supervisors within the department investigated the complaint and determined Mainord had acted inappropriately, according to the letter.
“We are surprised and concerned over the anger you exhibited in the video and concerned with your personal wellbeing and potential stressors that may be aggravating your wellbeing,” the letter said. “We find also that the allegations are sustained and a violation of, or in conflict with, various policies and procedures.”
One policy infraction included a failure to read the citizen their Miranda rights, which inform people of their constitutional rights during a police investigation, the letter said. He also reportedly failed to activate his body camera as required by the department when a situation “becomes adversarial.”
The letter said department supervisors were concerned about Mainord’s behavior because of two previous incidents that caused him to be verbally reprimanded in 2013 and 2014.
Specifically, the document said Mainord cursed at a member of the public at a farmers market in 2013 and was “verbally counseled and warned to correct the behavior.” In 2014, he was again verbally reprimanded for arguing with a Wasatch County employee, according to the letter.
Mainord was asked to comply with a “fitness for duty examination” and follow any recommendations in addition to attending a required anger management class. He was also suspended from participating in special assignments, such as the SWAT team, and barred from receiving overtime unless approved by a supervisor for six months.
He violated the department’s corrective action plan less than two months after the first letter was issued, according to the document.
On Oct. 1, 2015, Mainord was reprimanded for a second time after he allegedly failed to follow orders, “used inappropriate force” and “acted unprofessionally in the presence of the general public by using unnecessary foul language.”
The letter said Mainord was asked to protect an underage girl during an “undercover takedown operation” involving an individual suspected of an inappropriate relationship with the minor. Mainord was ordered to stay with the girl while other officers apprehended the adult individual outside of a restaurant, but Mainord allegedly entered the establishment and contacted the suspect before he left the building.
“You drew your weapon on a suspect who was not posing any threat, whose arms were occupied with a package, and there was no specific information available indicating that there would be a threat,” the letter said. “While your weapon was drawn, you physically engaged the suspect without holstering your weapon while other officers were available to physically take the suspect into custody.”
The document said Mainord also “used foul language in front of uninvolved restaurant patrons and employees.”
Mainord’s supervisors wrote that he violated the city’s personnel policy by refusing to “comply with lawful instruction” and engaging in “insubordination” in addition to violating the Police Department’s procedures surrounding reasonable force and professionalism.
“The violations are further aggravated by recent discipline where mistreatment of another member of the public was addressed,” the letter said. “Because these types of incidents are continuing, a pattern of poor relations between you, the general public and neighboring agencies continues to bring discredit to the Heber City Police Department.”
The second incident led the department to place Mainord on probation for one year, which meant he was ineligible to participate in specialized or out-of-state training, as well as specialized assignments. He was removed from the SWAT team, and the active period for his corrective action plan was extended until May 2016.
Mainord was denied a merit pay increase for the year, too.
The department also mandated Mainord meet with a supervisor “bi-monthly” to “concentrate on (his) attitude and feelings pertaining to the general public, surrounding agencies” and the Heber City Police Department. The supervisor was responsible for documenting Mainord’s work performance and providing him with “coping mechanisms in dealing with stress and deescalating situations.”
Mainord was disciplined for a third time in 2017 after he was involved in a “verbal altercation” with a Utah Highway Patrol trooper, according to another letter in Mainord’s personnel file. The document said the trooper was removing debris from U.S. 40 when Mainord drove by and allegedly passed the trooper “too close,” which caused the trooper to make a rude hand gesture at Mainord.
Mainord then pulled over to talk with the trooper, but the “discussion quickly turned heated and generated a complaint” from the Utah Highway Patrol, the letter said.
Mainord’s supervisors wrote he “unnecessarily” stopped to interact with the trooper “who was obviously hostile” and chose to engage in an argument instead of apologizing, de-escalating the situation or ignoring the trooper. Mainord also cursed at the trooper and reportedly taunted him, based on body camera video the department reviewed.
“The altercation became so heated that (the trooper) called for backup units,” the letter said. “Regardless of our opinion of (the trooper’s) choice, this caused multiple emergency resources to be deployed unnecessarily to a ridiculous situation that you had every opportunity to avoid.”
The letter said Mainord showed a “continuing pattern of conduct” that is “further degrading relations” between Mainord, the public and other law enforcement agencies.
“This discredit has now become so pronounced that when the Wasatch County sheriff was called to testify on a legal action against you, his testimony was damaging,” the letter said, referring to former Wasatch County Sheriff Todd Bonner. “This despite the case being defensible in every other way.”
The document said Mainord was told to take days off with pay and “analyze (his) desire to remain with the department.” He was asked to provide a corrective action plan to his supervisors but failed to do so, which the letter said was “discouraging.”
Mainord was suspended without pay for five days and reassigned as a code enforcement officer and bailiff. He was placed on probation for one year and denied a merit pay increase.
The department also mandated that Mainord meet with a supervisor once a week to discuss his feelings about the job and learn coping strategies. Mainord also received another body camera, which he was directed to activate “anytime a contact becomes ‘adversarial.’”
Mainord appealed the disciplinary actions associated with the Utah Highway Patrol incident, but former Heber City Manager Mark Anderson upheld the department’s findings after reviewing statements from Mainord and the state trooper, body camera footage and internal city reports.
“As I contemplated what a fair outcome would be, the issue that I have to grapple with is the fact that there is a documented pattern of confrontational behavior that has caused harm to the Heber City Police Department’s reputation and enhanced potential liability/risk to the city,” Anderson wrote. “As we discussed, the public is more likely to file suit against the city if the officer involved in an incident has a history of documented aggressive behavior. The risk is increased if other law enforcement agencies view the officer as a problem officer that is difficult to work with.”
Anderson added that he was “confident” Mainord had “the work ethic to be very successful in code enforcement” and encouraged him to view the reassignment as a way to “have a huge positive impact on the appearance of our community.”
“Lastly, Eric, please be aware that the city acknowledges that you have made progress in this area, and that you have solved several high profile crimes through tenacious work effort and … good judgment in many instances,” Anderson said. “The city also appreciates your continued loyalty you have shown. I hope that you will address the issues identified by police leadership, as you have the potential to make a big difference in the department and the city.”
Rigby had not responded to a request for comment as of Thursday afternoon.