A Denver police corporal was fired after he sexually harassed a female recruit for weeks during her field training as a new officer, according to police disciplinary records released Monday.
Cpl. James Sandoval, a nine-year veteran on the police force, was fired June 4 after a female recruit reported that he rested his hand on her thigh during overnight shifts, discussed personal details of his life, tried to kiss her, discussed sex, visited her home, took her to isolated areas and turned off his body camera while there, the records show.
Sandoval was assigned as the woman’s field training officer during December 2023, and his actions escalated during the month that he trained her, according to the disciplinary records. She was the first female recruit he’d trained.
Internal affairs investigators found Sandoval visited the woman’s home at least twice after he was no longer her training officer, and that he drove past her home after midnight on two other occasions. He took her to a secluded area and turned off his body-worn camera 20 times during the month he trained the female recruit.
Sandoval said he visited the isolated area in order to write reports, and that he turned off his camera to avoid inadvertently activating it while filling out paperwork.
The woman said she sought professional advice during the corporal’s visits to her home, but that Sandoval tried to touch, hug and kiss her. He denied inappropriate physical contact, but admitted to discussing details of his personal life with the recruit, looking through her phone and discussing sex with her.
The woman also alleged that Sandoval would fall asleep during shifts, which he later admitted to, though he said he fell asleep just once and that it was related to a medical condition.
Internal affairs investigators could not independently verify the recruit’s claims that Sandoval left his hand on her thigh for hours during training shifts or her claim that he called her “baby,” both of which Sandoval denied.
“However, the Department believes the complainant’s allegations to be more credible than the information provided by Corporal Sandoval,” Director of Public Safety Armando Saldate wrote in a June 4 disciplinary letter.
The corporal’s actions, when taken together, reflect a “highly improper working dynamic between a corporal in a position of power over a training recruit officer,” Saldate wrote.
The recruit, who was not identified in the disciplinary letter, resigned from the police department in February 2024, then pursued a formal complaint against Sandoval.
Sandoval could not be reached for comment Monday.
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