Small City in Minnesota Left Without a Police Department After the Entire Force Recently Resigned

A pay dispute led to the resignation of the entire police department in a small town located in southeastern Minnesota.

The entire Goodhue Police Department, including its police chief, resigned over issues with pay.

“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,” Mayor Ellen Anderson Buck said at a city council meeting.

“So, at this point, there’s no reason to really talk about pay increases since we no longer have a police force,” she concluded.

The population of the city is approximately 1,300.

Members of the Goodhue Police Department were earning $22 per hour.

As reported by NBC News:

A small city in southeastern Minnesota could be left without a police department after the whole force recently resigned, according to officials.

The Goodhue Police Department resigned due to issues with the city’s pay, Mayor Ellen Anderson Buck said at a city council meeting Monday. The city is located in a county by the same name, and has a population of just over 1,000, according to its website.

The city council met to discuss options for police coverage following 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 on Aug. 9, the Associated Press reported. A full-time officer and five part-time employees resigned two days after learning about Smith.

At a July 26 city council meeting, Smith said there were “zero applicants” for the city’s 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.”

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