Estimated read time: 7-8 minutes
SALT LAKE CITY — Travis Reitz is doing the same work his father did. His company is appointed by Salt Lake County to carry out various responsibilities.
"I have to provide all my own insurance, I have to have workers (compensation), I have to pay everything any other company would pay and we get zero benefits from the state or county," said Reitz, of Midvale-based Constable Reitz, LLC. "However, we have city, county and state clients — including the Utah State Tax Commission and several attorneys general — and those government agencies pay us as we do work for them."
For fans of TV's "Justified," the caricature of Constable Bob and his AMC Pacer "police car," played by comedian Patton Oswalt, doesn't inspire confidence in a constable's ability to protect and to serve. In some parts of the country, primarily rural areas, constables are police officers contracted to save a small municipality or county the expense of a public law enforcement agency.
Historically, constables may have originated during the Roman Empire and had responsibility for guarding imperial stables and eventually leading cavalry units in battle. In Great Britain, the office of constable had responsibilities that blended with that of a marshal, over time, and the constable's role in law enforcement was born.
In colonial America, constables were a carryover from English rule, and constables and marshals were commonly the only law enforcement officers in old Western towns in America. According to the St. George News, constables were the only law enforcement officers in Utah prior to statehood.
The first constable in the Deseret Territory, in fact, may have been Orrin Porter Rockwell, St. George News reports. Rockwell is probably best known for serving as a personal bodyguard to both Brigham Young and Joseph Smith before him.
Throughout the 20th century in America, constables, however, were gradually replaced by municipal and state law enforcement agencies. Constables would assume civil duties — as they do today, as law enforcement officers for the court system.
Particularly in northern Utah, Reitz said, constables may be hired by courts to act as bailiffs in courtrooms and to assist with transporting defendants and prisoners between jails and courts. This frees sheriff's departments and municipal police agencies to focus their efforts elsewhere.
Constables in Utah can also be hired by private entities, and many of Reitz's clients are law firms. Individuals being served with divorce papers, lawsuits and evictions, for example, are likely to encounter a constable in Utah.
Constables must graduate from a police academy and participate in the same annual trainings police officers do, and they are carefully recruited and selected.
You have been served
Reitz will pick and choose when to strap on his duty belt, with a handgun, handcuffs, Taser and his bulletproof vest. Though, he'll remain more comfortable if a morning is spent simply serving wage garnishments and other legal documents between businesses and law firms.
Three evictions at two different Salt Lake County apartment complexes made up most of the first day spent with Reitz. The eviction process in Utah is a lengthy one, and renters have several opportunities to avoid eviction. One of the final steps is to be served an eviction notice that states what day the renter must vacate.
Reitz or one of his deputies will serve that final eviction notice and then return on the actual eviction day. In some cases, the renters have gone and the constables simply confirm it and make certain all windows are closed and locked. They'll also post a "no trespassing" notice on the outside door. The private landlord or apartment management will also change the locks.
Renters who return to the property and gain entry would face criminal trespassing charges.
"Unfortunately, most renters have made little effort to begin moving when we show up to enforce the final lock-out order," stated Reitz. "In those cases, we give them five minutes or so to grab any necessities or pets and then they must vacate. Arrangements have to be made by them with the law firm handling the eviction, and they'll have a window of time to come and get the rest of their belongings."
An eviction notice he served last month fit that description. It appeared nothing had been moved out of the apartment. The tenants knew this day was coming, however, and the father of a child living there was present and taking some of his daughter's things so she could live with him.
The primary tenant was slow in gathering her essentials and her cat and, after stretching a five-minute process into 15 minutes, Reitz had to ask her to get her cat and vacate. Reitz had already made sure windows and the patio door were secure and the apartment maintenance person had already changed the locks.
He put copies of the eviction notice and a no trespassing order on the outside of the door as it was closed.
At the second apartment, furniture and most belongings had been moved out. The tenant was present and wanted time to take his remaining boxed possessions to his truck. After some back and forth, he and Reitz settled on giving him time only to move those boxed belongings outside of the apartment door.
All but a few evictions over his many years as a constable have gone smoothly. Two recent errands, however, involved a suicide shortly after Reitz had knocked on the door — Reitz heard the gunshot. There was another where an armed man attempted to lure constables and responding sheriff's deputies to shoot him.
Reitz and his deputies are not tied to any law enforcement dispatch and must call 911 if help is needed. In some cases, constables have prior history with someone and will either visit that person with several constables or will preemptively request help from local law enforcement.
In addition to eviction notices, constables serve arrest warrants, collect bail and take offenders to jail, though certain warrants for felony offenders are handled only by local and county law enforcement officers.
Reitz said that occasionally tenants destroy property, leaving it in extreme states of disrepair, knowing of impending eviction. One such tenant was a man who lived in the apartment with his approximately 14-year-old daughter and their very large dog. As he answered the door, the smell from inside immediately filled the outside air.
Reitz explained the process to him; the man claimed they were in the middle of moving. It appeared, instead, that everything they owned was simply strewn about. Dog feces, food and dirty dishes, and unidentified liquids covered the kitchen and bathroom floors, along with loose trash and dirty clothes.
After being contentious about having to call a law firm to arrange for his belongings, the man and his daughter took a few trash bags filled with their possessions, along with the dog, and headed out the door.
The eviction orders allow for the sale of any belongings left behind by tenants to help fulfill part of their debt. Constables assist in arranging those auctions.
On another day, Reitz was serving writs of execution for the Utah State Tax Commission at two Lindon adjacent restaurants that had been collecting sales taxes from customers but not paying them to the state. Both establishments, he said, were repeat offenders. In one case he knew the business had been closed and reopened multiple times in a family member's name by the owner.
As part of the state's collection efforts, the business licenses have already been revoked. The restaurants were operating illegally, in addition to not paying taxes.
Past experience told Reitz he didn't need his duty belt and bulletproof vest at the first establishment. The owner was on vacation, though, so Reitz served the manager on duty the writs and explained that a sale of their property would take place later in August.
He was also ordered to confiscate any cash on hand and take the establishment's credit card processing terminals. Reitz explained that the state has a desire both to collect the owed taxes and make it difficult for the restaurant to continue stealing sales taxes. He took photos of the dining and kitchen areas, to document property on site should there be a future auction.
At the second establishment, Reitz threw on his belt and vest and said the owner had lost his temper the last time Reitz had visited. He followed the same procedure as before, though, customers were present this time and the restaurant owner had to refuse to seat one party while comping the meals for another, as the business no longer had the ability to take their credit cards.
While the role of constables has evolved over time, their place in the Utah courts now ensures that city, county and state law enforcement agencies can utilize their manpower most efficiently. Combined, each works together to protect and serve.
