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Newport Police Officer Tyler Hatfield charged with unlawful acts with a minor boy, resigns


This story has been updated

Tyler Hatfield, 30, who has been charged in Boone County with a Class D felony for one count of Unlawful Use of Electronic Means to induce a minor to engage in sexual or other prohibited activities, has now resigned from the Newport Police Department.

If found guilty of the crime Hatfield will lose his certification to serve as a police officer in Kentucky.

Tyler Hatfield (Photo from Boone County Sheriff’s office)

The Boone County Sheriff’s office investigated reports from a teenage boy who said he had interacted with Hatfield via Snapchat. They executed a warrant Saturday night to search Hatfield’s home in Burlngton and recovered his cell phone and tablet. They said Hatfield confessed to sending the explicit messages and had requested and received an explicit photo from the teenager.

The Sheriff’s office emphasized they have no evidence any of the activities happened while the suspect was on duty.

The Newport Police Department’s immediate statement said:

“. . .The department is cooperating fully with the Boone County Sheriff’s Department. An internal investigation by our department will also be conducted. Nothing is more important to this department and to the citizens of Newport than the integrity of our officers. Any allegations of this nature  – if true – will not be tolerated.”

In a statement released Monday, the department said:

“(If found guilty of the crime) . . .Newport police will work to ensure that Hatfield never again serves as a police officer in Kentucky using authority granted under Senate Bill 80, which the Kentucky General Assembly enacted and Gov. Andy Beshear signed into law earlier this year. The legislation closed loopholes that allowed some officers convicted of crimes to serve as an officer with another agency.

“Senate Bill 80 gives the Kentucky Law Enforcement Council (KLEC) — a statewide law enforcement governing body — more authority to decertify law enforcement officers convicted of crimes. It also requires KLEC to provide information on an officer’s certification statues to an out-of-state enforcement agency.”


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