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SALT LAKE CITY (AP) -- A police officer who slept through a court hearing where he was supposed to testify after working a graveyard shift has been cleared of a contempt charge.
A judge says there is no evidence that officer Jeff VanKatwyk intended to miss testifying at the trial last May.
The original judge who cited VanKatwyk was upset because the drunken driving case had to be thrown out.
VanKatwyk said he had gone to his parents' house during jury selection to get a little rest after working since 10:00 the night before the trial.
He said he had his cell phone and expected to return to the courthouse when he was called after the jury had been selected. But nobody called.
The city didn't prosecute VanKatwyk, but the judge pushed ahead with the contempt charge.
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Information from: The Salt Lake Tribune
(Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
