Ken Wallentine

Law Enforcement and the Law

Ken Wallentine is the chief of the West Jordan (Utah) Police Department and former chief of law enforcement for the Utah Attorney General. He has served over four decades in public safety, is a legal expert and editor of Xiphos, a monthly national criminal procedure newsletter. He is a member of the Board of Directors of the Institute for the Prevention of In-Custody Death and serves as a use of force consultant in state and federal criminal and civil litigation across the nation.

LATEST ARTICLES

Legal

Plain view pipe was suspect’s downfall

Assessing the totality of the circumstances, a court holds the plain view exception applied and the officers’ search of a vehicle was lawful

September 14, 2022 10:35 PM

Ken Wallentine

Traffic Enforcement, Highway Patrol

Violating the 3-second following rule leads to 4 years in prison

The court restated the well-established law that an officer’s observance of a traffic violation, no matter how minor, gives the officer probable cause to initiate a stop

September 06, 2022 10:00 AM

Ken Wallentine

K-9

K9 warnings may (or may not) be a good idea

The court noted the “vast difference” between providing a warning before releasing a dog to search off-lead and not giving a warning while searching with a leashed dog

August 25, 2022 05:01 PM

Ken Wallentine

Investigations

Girlfriend’s consent to search of ‘man bag’ leads to charges

As long as an officer has a good-faith belief that the person has authority to consent, the consent will be upheld in court.

August 22, 2022 04:20 PM

Ken Wallentine

Legal

This is cyberstalking. Any questions?

Investigation of cyberstalking, or any stalking based on communications, should start with a visit to the appropriate prosecutor for guidance on the constitutional guardrails

August 22, 2022 03:41 PM

Ken Wallentine