(KNSI) – The St. Cloud Police Department is working on getting more officers on the streets during a difficult time. Mayor Dave Kleis says it’s been tough to find officers for months and isn’t getting better.
“It’s always a tough profession to get people into to begin with. And then, it made it even tougher in the last two years. We’re doing everything we can. We’re really stepping up recruitment. Our folks are great at that.”
He says the SCPD has high morale because of great people and community support.
“I’d put our folks up here locally against any department in the world. They’re good. They’re dedicated. But they need the help.”
Kleis says the issues plaguing other departments affect St. Cloud. He says officers aren’t going to different departments; they’re leaving their careers.
“We’ve got challenges in law enforcement nationally. We’re not isolated from that. We’re probably better off because of the high morale but folks not in the in the pipeline. And you know we need people that actually want to go into that profession and keep folks that are that are there too.”
In March, the SCPD had 109 officers and reported it was down 14 officers or about 10% of its force. Last month, the SCPD released a recruitment video showing the good things the department does.
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