Goodhue police car parked outside City Hall.Photo:Carlos Gonzalez/Star Tribune via AP
Carlos Gonzalez/Star Tribune via AP
The entire police department of a small Minnesota town has resigned, citing a lack of support from the City Council and the mayor, according to multiple reports.
The council will seek assistance from the Goodhue County Sheriff’s Office in the meantime, as Smith and the other full-time officer will leave their posts on August 23.
“This is heartbreaking to us,” said Goodhue Mayor Ellen Anderson Buck at an emergency City Council meeting Monday night, per the outlet.
The small police force protected the town of Goodhue, which has a population of just over 1,000, according to itswebsite.
The Goodhue council convenes for a special meeting to address the resignation of it’s entire police department.Carlos Gonzalez/Star Tribune via AP
Two weeks before his resignation, Smith expressed his concern with the City Council about the low pay and “harsh reality” of working at the department, reportedUSA Today.
“I don’t want to be the guy working 80 hours a week just running this PD, being on call 24 hours a day, which I already am, and leaving no time for my family," Smith said, per the outlet.
“Right now … trying to hire at $22 an hour, you’re never going to see another person again walk through those doors,” Smith told the council, continuedUSA Today, adding that smaller departments were paying a minimum of $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, perNBC News.
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Despite officers receiving a 5% raise — and Smith a $13,000 raise — earlier this year, the Goodhue police officers were still underpaid compared to other cities, according to theMinneapolis Star Tribune.
“We were trying very, very hard to bring those numbers up,” Buck said, per the outlet.
The City Council meeting on Monday was originally scheduled to negotiate pay raises for the police department, but the officers resigned before it took place. The City Council then discussed alternative ways to provide police services after the department’s departure.
“They provided excellent safety and security to our community,” Council member Chris Schmit said, per theMinneapolis Star Tribune. “We want that back.”
The Goodhue Police Department did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.
source: people.com
