City of Sartell Selects Brandon Silgjord as Next Police Chief

Originally published 5:57 p.m. Wednesday, March 1st, 2023

Updated 7:05 p.m. Wednesday, March 1st, 2023

(KNSI) — The City of Sartell Wednesday night selected the Supervising Deputy Sheriff in the St. Louis County Sheriff’s Office in Duluth as its next Chief of Police.

Brandon Silgjord has been named the replacement for the retiring Chief Jim Hughes.

Silgjord has been in law enforcement since 2006 and with the St. Louis County Sheriff’s Department since 2009. He has eight years of supervisory experience and oversees a staff of 70, which multiple members said is important as the department will grow with the population in the future.

Mayor Ryan Fitzthum tells KNSI that Silgjord’s supervisory experience and his vision for the future stood out during Silgjord’s in-person interview.

“I think his ability to articulate vision and strategy in leading a department, not only of the size and scale division that he does in St. Louis County today, but how he would apply that to the City of Sartell, the Sartell Police Department, and then with our growth projections. [He] really stood out to me as a strong candidate.”

Chief-elect Silgjord has also served with the Pequot Lakes Police Department and Morrison County Sheriff’s Office. He has been a patrol deputy, K9 handler, at risk youth program advocate, SWAT operator and field training officer. Silgjord also served St. Louis County as a patrol sergeant, FTO supervisor, SWAT sniper, and academy lead patrol tactics instructor and oversaw water patrol grants and enforcement efforts. He was promoted to Commander to oversee operations in the St. Louis County Sheriff’s Department Hibbing District.

Silgjord holds an Associate of Applied Science degree in Criminal Justice from Central Lakes College and a Bachelor of Science in Law Enforcement from Metropolitan State University, where he graduated summa cum laude. He is also a 2019 National Command and Staff College graduate, earning a MAGNUS leadership award for Command and Staff Leadership Class.

The offer is pending negotiations, a background check, and a comprehensive psychological exam. His anticipated start date is to be determined pending the completion of the final hiring terms.

Mayor Fitzthum talked about the overall process, saying it was designed to put the finalists through a series of interviews and a community meeting that would mimic real life.

“We want a chief candidate to go through a whole series of interviews, which is going to be mentally draining. And then at the end of the day, put them in front of the public and engage with the public, right? And for us, there’s a lot of realness to that. That they’re going to end a shift and there’s going to be an incident and they’ve got to be able to not only lead a crew, but also be able to engage media, engage our counsel, engage the community in a productive manner.”

Fitzthum says the city developed the interview process when it hired its first full-time fire department chief last year.

City officials tell KNSI News there were nine total candidates, all from outside the department and from a diverse representation locally, statewide, and out of state. Silgjord and a local police officer, Sergeant Brent Bukowski of the Sauk Rapids Police Department, were the finalists.

Chief Hughes has been with the Sartell Police Department for 32 years. His last day is March 31st. The city council is expected to approve Deputy Chief Wayne Schreiner as interim chief.

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KNSI News Reporter Grant Dossetto contributed to this story.

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