A tiny city in southeast Minnesota now reportedly has no police department since the chief and officers all simultaneously quite over the issue of lack wage issues.
A Monday municipal council meeting that was initially scheduled to debate wage rises saw the resignation of Goodhue’s police chief, sole full-time officer, and five part-time officers.
Goodhue has a population of 1,250 according to the 2020 census.
When the contracts for the cops expire later this month, the mayor Ellen Anderson Buck said the Goodhue County Sheriff’s Office will monitor the city.
“We need to pursue other options. So at this point, there is no reason to really talk about pay increases since we no longer have a police force.” the mayor reportedly said.
She said that active criminal cases will be turned over to the county sheriff.
Anderson Buck referred to the council’s intention to eventually reform the department as the “ultimate goal,” despite the fact that she acknowledged the challenge of finding new officers. According to her, Minnesota has roughly 200 unfilled police positions.
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