March 28, 2024

State media covers campus incident

This archived article was written by:

USU Eastern made news in the state media this week about an incident between the cosmetology department’s classroom and Price City Mayor Joe Piccolo on Dec. 3, 2014.
According to Paul Rolly in the Salt Lake Tribune, Piccolo stormed into the cosmetology building and berated instructors over the grade his daughter received on a project.
“When campus police officer Lynn Archuleta arrived, one account said Piccolo turned his ire toward the officer saying, ‘Do you know who I am,’” he wrote.
Piccolo was cited for disorderly conduct, Rolly wrote.
Deputy Carbon County Attorney John Schindler met with the victims Dec. 23, Rolly wrote. Schindler suggested filing an infraction, the least-serious criminal charge available and offered a plea-in-abeyance agreement, in which the charge would be dismissed if the mayor stayed out of trouble for a year.
The instructors, who Piccolo verbally abused, were not satisfied and sent letters to the attorney general and the judge. Justice Court Judge Jon Carpenter recused himself from the case, Rolly wrote.
According to the article, Piccolo has apologized to the instructors and told his city council members what happened.
On KSL, Geoff Liesik, talked about Mayor Piccolo being charged with disorderly conduct, an infraction.
Liesik said, witness statements filled out by the instructors describe
Piccolo as “enraged,” “intimidating” and “threatening.”
He reported the mayor told the instructors that he wanted to “gut this place out.”
Piccolo admitted that he stumbled and fell flat on his face and that he is sorry. He also said he paid a $100 fine for his ticket, but not been accepted by the court.