City of Caledonia gives reasons for police chief’s suspension
4378482CALEDONIA, Minn.– The city of Caledonia is explaining why they suspended their police chief for two weeks without pay.
News 8 filed an open records request and Wednesday the city released details of the suspension of Chief Kurt Zehnder. It includes a list of nearly a dozen different deficiencies.
1.) Reports are poorly prepared and contain many spelling and grammatical errors
2.) Demonstrated lack of respect for personal space boundaries in dealing with female colleagues that has caused discomfort and concern
3.) Demonstrated lack of respect or appreciation for office decorum or privacy
4.) Failed to abide by Minnesota Statutes governing arrests
5.) Failed to document investigative activities related to the burglary of the Caledonia Liquor Store and failed to follow up on information about a suspect in the case
6.) Failed to document investigative activities related to a bomb threat at the Middle/High School and made inappropriate comments to the media
7.) Lacked knowledge of authority to enforce an out of state order of protection and did not promptly contact the victim who reported a violation of the order
8.) Violated the department’s computer use policy by engaging in web browsing unrelated to duties as a police officer
9.) Violated the legal rights of juvenile in a trespassing incident at a local school
10.) Unresponsive to agencies when requests for information are sought
11.) Presented a case to an agency that did not establish proof of an offense occurring in Caledonia or Houston Co.
Zehnder’s suspension began October 23rd.
