Sheriff’s Office Agrees to Patrol Streets in Minnesota City Where Entire Police Force Quit

Police in riot gear block off a street to anti-war protestors outside the Republican National Convention (RNC) at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minn., on Aug. 31, 2008. Max Whittaker/Getty Images

The small city of Goodhue in Minnesota has managed to narrowly avoid potential chaos after the local Sheriff’s Office agreed to take up policing duties following the resignation of the entire police force earlier this month.

The Goodhue City Council unanimously agreed on Aug. 24 to contract the Goodhue County Sheriff’s Office on a temporary basis, bringing in deputies to police the city until the end of 2023.

Under the agreement, the city will pay $43,548 to the Sheriff’s Office to cover the city. Officers will patrol the streets of the city, which has a population of just over 1,200, for at least six hours a day, according to the Star Tribune newspaper of Minneapolis.

The Sheriff’s Office already has contracts with four other communities in Goodhue Count: Wanamingo, Pine Island, Dennison, and Bellechester.

Thursday’s agreement came just hours before the city was set to be left without a single law enforcement officer after the entire police department resigned earlier this month amid a dispute over low pay.

Former Police Chief Josh Smith submitted his resignation on Aug. 9 while one full-time officer and five part-time officers resigned just two days later, according to reports.

Low Pay, Recruitment Issues

The resignations came after Mr. Smith told a council meeting in July that the city wasn’t offering enough money or incentives such as sign-on bonuses to retain officers when other places were willing to offer higher pay. This, he said, had led to recruitment issues.

“Trying to hire at $22 an hour, you’re never going to see another person again walk through those doors,” Mr. Smith told the council. He said smaller departments pay at least $30 an hour.

However, his concerns appeared to fall on deaf ears, and the entire police force subsequently resigned.

Still, Goodhue Mayor Ellen Anderson Buck told NBC affiliate KARE of Minneapolis last week that she was blindsided by the resignations, adding that the council had been working towards increasing salaries for law enforcement officers.

“We are all devastated by this,” said Ms. Buck.“We’re trying to muddle through this and do the best we can and provide service for our community.”

The mayor noted there are currently more than 200 openings for police officers across the state, and claimed the city had given law enforcement officials a 5 percent pay increase and Mr. Smith a $13,000 raise at the beginning of the year.

“This is a great place to live and to work and I think we’ll get them back here. It’s just going to take some time and rebuilding,” she said.

‘This Isn’t Just a Local Issue’

Mr. Smith has not publically commented on the resignations and did not respond to The Epoch Times’ request for comment.

Speaking following the agreement Thursday, Goodhue Sheriff Marty Kelly said that while his office is able to step in and fill the vacancies for now, he is hopeful the agreement will not remain a long-term thing.

“This isn’t just a local issue in Goodhue,” he told Minnesota’s KSTP-TV, an affiliate of ABC, adding that recruitment issues are a  problem across the whole country. “I think we will rebound, but it’s going to take a few years,” he added.

Police shortages have been seen across the United States in recent years amid lower pay and increased calls to defund the police.

According to the Police Executive Research Forum, there were 47 percent more officer resignations in 2022 than in 2019, and 19 percent more retirements in 2022 than in 2019.

Commenting on the temporary agreement with the Goodhue County Sheriff’s Office Thursday, Goodhue Mayor Ellen Anderson Buck said the community is “very excited” to see the presence of officers on the street following the recent resignations.

“Thank you,” she added.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.