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Police pausing 24/7 service while trying to hire officers
by Gregory R. Norfleet · News · December 13, 2023
Down to one full-time officer and three part-timers, the West Branch Police Department will “reorganize” and end 24/7 coverage, at least for now, according to the outgoing police chief.
Chief John Hanna told the West Branch City Council at its Dec. 5 meeting that the city also will need to find an interim police chief.
Speaking Dec. 7 to the Times, Hanna said the department needs to “reset” and “stabilize.”
“My goal before I depart is to ensure that Ofc. (Cathy) Steen’s position is stable and the (Student Resource Officer) is maintained,” he said.
Steen serves as the SRO for West Branch Community School District.
“We’re going to step back, take some time, and make sure we get it right,” the chief said.
The WBPD received eight applications for police officer positions and on Saturday Hanna began administering physical and written testing on the non-certified — untrained — applicants.
Hanna said he will continue working his way through the hiring process up until he leaves.
Of the eight applications, two are already certified and only one will be accepted for consideration, the chief said. Of the six non-certified applicants, the one and only woman withdrew her name for consideration, so five men went through testing.
The physical test took place at the West Branch High School track. Those who passed the physical test could then take the written test, which took place at the WBPD. Hanna said he is trained to procter the Stanard & Assoc. National Police Officer Selection test.
“We’ve got a couple who are from West Branch, which is encouraging,” he said. “Other than that, it is a pretty standard pool.”
Of those who pass the first two tests, interviews would begin the week of Dec. 18. Those then would undergo a background investigation and fingerprinting and psychological screening the week of Dec. 26.
The psychological test is known as the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory test that involves 567 yes-no and true-false questions on a computer. Not only is the subject tested on right and wrong, but also on speed as it assumes those who take longer are thinking how the police department “wants” them to answer, rather than what they actually believe.
“Answers to those questions determine whether somebody’s prone to anxiety or depression or has schitzophrenia or those kinds of things,” he said. “It identifies some of those traits.”
Hanna said he had to take the MMPI test when he applied recently for a Johnson County Sheriff’s Department position and he finished in about an hour.
“The faster you take the test the more truthful your answer is because it’s designed to be a gut (response) … your initial impression,” he said. “They repeat several questions throughout the exam.”
Hanna said the certified officer only needs to undergo the background test and the MMPI test. Everyone who passes the rest can be hired immediately, he said.
The police chief added that he received two more “hits” that day from interested individuals.
“At least if this candidate pool doesn’t work out, there’s still some prospects,” he said.
City Administrator Adam Kofoed said at the meeting that Hanna took on some non-police responsibilities which remaining staff will need to assume. For example, Hanna uploaded city council videos to the city’s website and YouTube over the past six months, and Hanna will train Ofc. Cathy Steen and Kofoed to take over.
“We need to start our reorganization now,” Kofoed said.
Hanna said that with only two full-time officers, he and Steen almost never saw each other in an effort to cover all shifts.
“To continue some smooth operation of the department, we’re going to have to pause our 24-hour operations and let the county handle the emergencies when we’re not available,” the police chief said. “Cathy and I are going to have to double up, and I didn’t want to do that without your approval because that’s a big decision.”
Hanna said the city “has a whole slew” of daily responsibilities, like crime reporting required to the FBI.
“If we don’t do it, the city can lose its eligibility for federal funds,” he said. “There are some small things that are part of my day that I need to bring her up to speed on.”
Councilmember Jerry Sexton asked if other city staff could pick up some of those responsibilities. Hanna said yes, but those that do need to undergo a background check because they would need to have access to police software.
Councilmember Colton Miller asked about overlapping some hours with Steen so she could get training. Hanna said they could if the hours overlapped daily.
“It doesn’t make sense to completely close the doors to train,” Hanna said. “I can certainly make that happen.”
The police chief said that between Steen and the part-time officers, the WBPD can cover a lot of hours. However, someone will still need to lead the department.
“There’s going to be a leadership vacuum when I step away,” he said, asking permission to post the job internally for a supervisor/sergeant position.
That allows the current officers to apply in hopes of having someone in charge when he leaves at the end of the month. This person would serve hopefully until the city appoints a permanent replacement.
Kofoed said the council will need to figure out an adequate interim salary.
“The awkwardness of naming an interim police chief is, ‘At what point do they work X amount of days before they get a bump in pay or if they want to be the police chief and you see there is already an interim and they have a lot of experience. They’re probably not going to apply,” the city administrator said.
“Yeah, do it,” Mayor Roger Laughlin said of advertising for an interim chief.
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