Entire police department in Minnesota city resigns
The Goodhue City Council discussed options for police coverage after the entire department’s resignation.
A small city in southeastern Minnesota could be left without a police department after the entire force recently resigned, officials said.
The Goodhue Police Department resigned because of issues with the city’s pay, Mayor Ellen Anderson Buck said at a City Council meeting Monday. The city, which is in the county of the same name, it has a population of just over 1,000, according to its website.
The City Council met to discuss options for police coverage after the department’s resignation. The meeting was initially called so the city could discuss salary increases for the department, but the entire team resigned before it could happen.
Police Chief Josh Smith submitted his resignation at a City Council meeting last Wednesday, The Associated Press reported. A full-time officer and five part-time employees resigned two days after having learned about Smith.
“Since the resignations have been handed in by our police department, it has been recommended by our city attorney that at this point we need to pursue our other options,” Anderson Buck said at the top of the meeting. “So, at this point, there’s no reason to really talk about pay increases, since we no longer have a police force.”
At a July 26 council meeting, Smith said there were “zero applicants” for the police department and disclosed that other law enforcement agencies were trying to recruit him and his colleagues.
“So right now with our current — trying to hire at $22 an hour, you’re never going to see another person again walk through those doors. That’s it,” Smith said. “Unless you guys do a dramatic change.”
Smith stressed the urgency of the matter and said smaller police departments he has looked into pay at least $30 an hour.
“There’s zero incentive to come out here to a small town, low pay, being on call, affecting your free time and everything else,” he said.
Members of the police department, including Smith, didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment. Anderson Buck also didn’t respond to requests for comment.
At the council meeting, Anderson Buck said she has been in contact with the Goodhue County Sheriff’s Office and has a meeting scheduled Wednesday to discuss police coverage for the city in the interim.
1 Comment
Mystickueen · August 16, 2023 at 3:29 PM
People are not playing no more. This is not back in 1990’s when they were paying people 5.00 a hour. Shit cost. People are working and need to be paid so that they can make money to take care of their families, food, clothes and bills etc.They are not paying the working people enough to make a living period. They won’t give the American people money but sending money all over seas to fight a freaking war that has nothing to do with the working people. Make it make sense. I don’t blame them. Everyone is quitting and going on strike and shit. September 1st coming up there will be more. Either they going to have to take these high prices down on everything or they going to have to pay the American people period.
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