2016 Annual Report

2016

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Command Staff | 4 Message from the Chief | 5 Mission Statement | 6 Office of Professional Standards | 7 Offenses Reported | 8 Field Services Division | 10 Traffic Safety Unit | 14 School Resource Officers | 15 K9 Unit | 18 Downtown Resource Work Program | 21 Community Trust Officers | 22 Investigations Services Division Personal and Property Crimes | 24 Metro Street Crimes | 25 Narcotics | 26 Administrative Services Division | 28 Finance and Grant | 30 New Hires | 31 Promotions and Retirements | 32 2016 Awards | 33 Officer Jason Moszer Incident Recognition Awards | 38 Events | 41 In Memory | 55 3

CHIEF David Todd

Joe Anderson

LIEUTENANT

Jason Nelson

William Ahlfeldt

Shannon Ruziska

LIEUTENANT

LIEUTENANT

LIEUTENANT Chris Helmick

Ross Renner

LIEUTENANT

LIEUTENANT

LIEUTENANT Mat Sanders

DEPUTY CHIEF

DEPUTY CHIEF

DEPUTY CHIEF Todd Osmundson

George Vinson

Travis Stefonowicz 4

Welcome to our 2016 Annual Report and thank you for your interest in the operations of the Fargo Police Department.

2016, was a difficult and challenging year for the Fargo Police Department. On February 10th, Officer Jason Moszer was shot and killed in the line of duty by an armed assailant. The loss of a fellow officer and friend was a devastating shock for our department from which we continue to work through and heal.

Our community was amazing in its support for their Fargo Police Department. That support has helped us immeasurably as we have learned how to move forward and become stronger as a police department and as a community.

The Fargo Police Department assisted North Dakota law enforcement in Morton County with the oil pipeline protests, which stretched on for 7 months. The Fargo Police Department’s participation in providing assistance to Morton County was grounded in upholding the rule of law and the fact other law enforcement agencies have come to assist our department when we’ve needed it.

Whether it is protecting and facilitating the 1st Amendment rights of protesters and trying to insure safe opportunities for them to voice their concerns - or protecting the private property rights of ranchers, farmers and yes, even the pipeline company. Law enforcement was the thin blue line in the middle trying to keep the peace and stand up for and enforce the rule of law.

Thanks to the support of our city commission, the Fargo Police Department has been able to add staff in order to keep up with a rapidly growing community. Currently the Fargo Police Department is authorized to staff 174 sworn officers and approximately 24 nonsworn staff. And, as the community has grown, so have the challenges associated with protecting and serving our community.

I’m incredibly proud of the men and women at the Fargo Police Department and I know what an honor it is to be the chief of their organization. I hope you enjoy our 2016 Annual Report.

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“To provide the citizens of Fargo quality service and a secure community. We are committed to the professional growth of our officers and department in order to better create and preserve a positive partnership with the community we serve.”

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The Office of Professional standards investigated 22 personnel complaints in 2016 involving 22 Officers. Below is a summary of those investigations: 

Nine complaints regarding vehicle crashes; eight sustained and one closed.



Six complaints for rules of conduct violations (four failure to report for duty or court, one failure to follow a supervisor’s directive, and one DUI arrest.) All violations were sustained.



Two complaints for violations of the pursuit policy, resulting in one sustained and one not sustained.



Two response to resistance complaints, both sustained dispositions.



One work performance complaint, which was sustained.



One safe firearms handling complaint, which was sustained.

The Office of Professional standards conducted 98 incident reviews , involving 114 officers , for response to resistance incidents, officer involved crashes and motor vehicle pursuits. 

Officers used force to overcome resistance in 63 incidents. Of those incidents, 61 incidents were determined to have been within policy, while two were outside of policy.



There were 33 officer involved crashes. Of those crashes, 23 were determined to have been preventable, resulting in nine personnel complaints. The other 10 were determined to have been non-preventable.



Two motor vehicle pursuits were reviewed, resulting in one sustained personnel complaint.

Complaint Dispositions Not Sustained Sustained

1 20

Exonerated Closed Unfounded Policy Failure Mediation Total

0 1 0 0 0 22

Disciplinary Actions Verbal Consultation

3

Letter of Consultation

8

Letter of Reprimand

7

Education Based Discipline

1

Suspension

0

Termination

0

Total

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**These numbers represent individual officers involved rather than number of incidents

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Offense

2015

2016

Change

% Change

Homicide

3

3

0

0%

Gross Sexual Imposition

67

79

12

18%

Robbery

53

69

16

30%

Aggravated Assault

240

257

17

7%

Arson

19

11

-8

-42%

Burglary

601

564

-37

-6%

Vehicle Theft

207

237

30

14%

Shoplifting

958

969

11

1%

Theft from Vehicle

395

427

32

8%

All other Thefts

1,193

1,676

483

40%

Total Part I Crimes

3,728

4,255

527

14%

Total Part II Crimes

6,278

6,041

-237

-4%

Total Offenses

10,006

10,296

290

3%

+Part I crimes include Homicide, Gross Sexual Imposition, Robbery, Aggravated Assault, Arson, Burglary, Theft and Vehicle Theft. ++Part II crimes include other offenses except the offenses listed above and traffic offenses. +++Data is subject to change.

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DEPUTY CHIEF Ross Renner

West District | 4

South District | 3

Central District | 2

North District | 1

Beat 41

Beat 31

Beat 21

Beat 11

Sgt. Mike Sanden

Sgt. Kevin Pallas

Beat 43

Beat 33

Beat 23

Beat 13

Sgt. Junell Krabbenhoft

Sgt. Chris Nichtern

Beat 42

Beat 32

Beat 22

Beat 12

Sgt. Shane Aberle

Sgt. Collin Gnoinsky

Lt. William Ahlfeldt

Sgt. Matt Ysteboe

Sgt. Mike Bernier

Sgt. Jerrod Wagner

Sgt. Mark Lykken

Lt. George Vinson

Lt. Travis Stefonowicz

Lt. Chris Helmick

Sgt. Mike Erbes

Sgt. Joel Erickson

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In 2016, Officers responded to more than 78k calls for service while patrolling their n e ighbo rho o ds, at ten di n g community events, enforcing traffic laws and focusing on individuals who were driving our crime numbers up.

877,279 miles 90,299 gallons of gas

2015

2016

Change

% Change

Calls for Service

75,219

78,784

3,565

5%

Arrests

6,967

7,412

445

6%

Traffic Citations

17,500

15,196

-2,304

-13%

Accidents

3,937

4,088

151

4%

DUI Arrests

654

550

-104

-16%

Ballistic Helmets Gate City Bank CEO Steve Swiontek heard our department would only be allocated enough funds to purchase half of the needed ballistic helmets for our squad cars so he made the other half possible with a generous donation.

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The Field Services Division is the largest division within the department with several specialty positions and secondary assignments such as K9 Officers, School Resource Officers, Cultural Liaison Officer, Community Trust Officers.

During 2016, the Field Services Division collaborated with the Investigative Services Division and focused on dedicating time on individuals who were driving our crime numbers. Because of this collaboration, several burglary, theft from automobile and drug arrests were made.

Police Executive Research Forum In 2016, Officer Cristie Jacobsen transitioned from her role as a Cultural Liaison Officer, which she served for eight years, to a position at Fargo South High School as a School Resource Officer. Officer Jacobsen had been assigned the momentous task to develop her position as the Cultural Liaison Officer to create lasting, trusting relationships with our diverse community and law enforcement. In September, Officer Jacobsen represented our department in Washington D.C. in a one day panel on engaging with refugees in our community hosted by the Police Executive Research Forum (PERF) and the Carnegie Corporations. Officer Jacobsen discussed what we have done to build, maintain and promote positive relationships with our refugee and resettlement communities.

Officers White and Larson had a good reason to be smiling: while on foot patrol in downtown , they caught a male who was suspected of stealing a bike!

New Police Chaplains In 2016, our department welcomed two new Police Chaplains, Father Raymond Marquart and Pastor Paul Nynas. Their role as a police chaplain is to help provide spiritual guidance and counseling to all members of the department, both sworn and civilian, as well as to their families in times of need. They also may be called upon to assist in supporting victims in times of crisis.

Phones Each patrol officer was assigned an iPhone in 2016 in order to help improve communication and accessibility to resources by the officers while out on patrol.

* The Police Training Program grew from 20 trainers to over 30 and 29 Officers went through the program in 2016. Two of those recruits finished the program in half the time!

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Mobile applications continue to grow and transform before our very eyes, and during 2016, creators released a new sensation: Pokemon Go! The new game didn’t pose too many issues for our officers, but did develop some interesting calls for service for “suspicious activity.” So, naturally, we had a little fun with it as well.

Officers crashed 4-year-old Finn’s birthday party at Chuck-e-Cheese after they were alerted of the little boy’s police themed party!

Officers handed out badge stickers and showed the squad car to Finn and his friends!

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In 2016, the Traffic Safety Unit had four officers who focused on traffic violations, traffic analysis, crash reduction, accident reconstruction, public education, and public relations. These officers typically utilize unmarked squad cars in the winter and inclement weather, and motorcycles during the warmer months. Due to staffing issues, these officers were used intermittently during the first half of 2016 to cover beats and were permanently reassigned to patrol in the fall of 2016. During 2016, these four officers still managed to write 7,733 traffic citations.

The Truck Regulatory Officer (TRO) acts as a liaison between the City of Fargo and the trucking & heavy construction industry. In 2016, the TRO presented 21 educational based seminars to local businesses. The TRO weighed 101 heavy trucks that appeared to be overweight. This resulted in $93,645.00 in overweight fines.

The Fargo Police Department was awarded three grants from the NDDOT to focus on specific traffic violations.

Under the distracted driving enforcement grant a total of 24 extra details were conducted resulting in 217 citations and 89 on these were for texting.

Under the seatbelt “Click It or Ticket” enforcement grant a total of 42 extra details were conducted resulting in 443 citations and 168 of these were for texting.

Under the impaired driving “Drive Sober of Get Pulled Over” enforcement grant a total of 60 extra details were conducted resulting in 226 citations and 45 on these were for Driving Under the Influence.

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Fargo North School Resource Officer Chad Moen developed “Cop Talks” after there had been a lot of misunderstandings about police actions and citizen’s interpretation of certain laws across the country to help explain police actions and give students a better understanding of their rights, especially when it comes to search and seizure.

Officer Moen held six “Cop Talks” that covered car crashes, traffic stops and loud parties. The students were interested to learn their rights when it comes to an officer searching their car or entering their home. Since students are exposed to K9’s sniffing lockers and vehicles at school, Officer Moen had Lieutenant George Vinson and his partner Earl give a demonstration and talk about the legality of K9 searches.

Officer Moen also covered some real life cases that generated a lot of publicity. They discussed police shootings and an officer in a classroom flipping over a student and her desk. These incidents provided an opportunity to discuss the realities of what goes into police use of force decisions.

After the death of Officer Jason Moszer, Officer Moen discussed some of the tactics involved. He spoke about perimeters, evacuation, negotiation and the use of Bomb robots and SWAT equipment. He also shared what the incident was like for he and his family to go through. Davies School Resource Officer Mike Austin recognized the success of “Cop Talks” and implemented it at Davies High School after its success at Fargo North High School.

Officer Austin held five “Cop Talks” and covered traffic stops, use of force and the incident involving the School Resource Officer who forcefully removed a female student from her desk, personal safety, loud parties, and the Crimes Against Children’s Unit Detectives spoke about sexting, cyber crimes, sex offenses and human trafficking.

Woodrow Wilson School Resource Officer Kyle Ness hosted several Police vs. Students basketball events every other week. Various members from the Police Department and community get together after school with Woodrow Wilson students and play pick up basketball while creating strong, trusting relationships.

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Woodrow Wilson School Resource Officer Melissa Westby served as a School Resource Officer at Woodrow Wilson for three years until she retired in 2016. Officer Westby was recognized for her outstanding volunteerism in 2015-2016 by the Fargo Public Schools Development Foundation!

One of Carl Ben School Resource Officer Patrick Meyer’s students dressed like a police officer for “dress like a hero day.”

Woodrow Wilson School Resource Officer Kyle Ness hosted an event during the fall of 2016 that brought the whole Agassiz School Building into direct contact with the Police Department, Fire Department and FM Ambulance.

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Officer Cristie Jacobsen meets with the Fargo South Criminal Justice club twice a month to educate and positively engage with her students. They discuss various topics such as the varying roles of a police officer in law enforcement, the use of force continuum, what constitutes a crime, and the use of our K9 unit.

RECOGNITION

Appreciation for their School Resource Officers during National Police Week

Discovery Middle School SRO Kingzett was presented a letter of recognition for an investigation into a ten year old child who was being neglected due to drugs.

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Former K9 Koa began his career in 2006 with Sgt. Jim VanLith. Koa was trained in criminal apprehension, tracking, building search, evidence recovery and narcotic odor detection. In 2010, Koa retired due to injury and continued to live with the VanLith family. On August 2, 2016, Koa passed away in the arms of his loving family.

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9 The K9 unit was deployed 503 times in 2016. Of those deployments, 18 were proactive searches, 86 deployments happened while on patrol and 417 deployments for narcotics.

Officer Ferris and K9 Bali won the 2015 Patrol Case of the Year award. Officer Cochran and K9 Falco won 3rd place in the Criminal Apprehension phase. In June 2016, K9 Bali was awarded the 2015 Patrol Case of the Year by the United States Police Canine Association region 12. The case involved a track and apprehension of a violent male wanted on multiple charges. Also in June, he took 1st place at the NPCA Narcotics competition in Dickinson, ND. In the past 10 years, our K9 use has increased significantly. In 2005, our K9 unit had three units and was deployed 152 times. In 2010, our K9 unit was deployed 349 times. In 2016, our three K9s conducted more narcotic deployments than the total deployments in 2010!

K9s Earl, Falco and Bali received customized bullet and stab protective vests. These vests were funded by a citizen of Fargo through a “Vested Interest.”

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K9 Handler Officer Jeremiah Ferris, Officer Sam Bollman and K9 Handler Officer Dave Cochran proudly display their partners success at the 2016 annual certifications. Officer Ferris and K9 Bali won the 2015 Patrol Case of the Year award. Officer Cochran and K9 Falco won 3rd place in the Criminal Apprehension phase.

K9 Falco visiting the dispatchers of the Red River Regional Dispatch Center during National Telecommunications Week. K9 Falco thought they could use a little break!

K9 Bali completing a routine airport check!

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Downtown Resource Officer Jesseca White developed the Downtown Community Work Program. The program was started to keep repeat offenders from serving time in jail for extended periods of time for minor offenses such as consuming in public, urinating, panhandling or trespassing because they weren’t paying their fines and ultimately costing the City of Fargo money.

A typical encounter with a repeat offender occurs with an officer issuing a citation with a court date, a failure to appear by the offender which results in a warrant, a court appearance and then either a sentence or fine to repeat the process again; the revolving door.

In between offenses, offenders were continuing to drink and cause problems for officers and the public. The goals of the program are to disrupt the revolving door and to get this population re-engaged in the community they live in through community service while also connecting them with services they may not be actively engaged in such as housing, chemical dependency rehabilitation, personal health and mental health care.

Participants complete community service projects for the city which range from picking up trash, setting up for events, or helping at local shelters and facilities. The group meets two times a week and works for around three hours at a time. Officer White worked with Municipal Court, City Prosecutor, Defense Prosecutors, the City of Fargo, and the Homeless Outreach Coordinator to come up with a system where participants are assigned to the work program and given a monetary fine or hours of service and allowed to work off the fines.

The department has seen a 50% recidivism rate for those in the program and the majority of them were housed, were in the housing process, or remained housed. Several of the participants entered rehab during the short time the program has been running. The program has cut police involvement with these individuals down significantly and we have fostered a better relationship with them because of it.

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In 2016, Community Trust Officers Matt Niemeyer and Mike Bloom spear headed several projects. The Officers visited Jefferson Elementary school once a week and ate lunch with a student they had been paired with . Officer Niemeyer was paired with a 3rd grader and Officer Bloom was paired with a 5th grader. These Officers also ate with other grades at different times during the lunch hour and participated with them during recess to help build trusting relationships with these youth.

Officer Niemeyer focused on Ed Clapp Elementary School and Lewis and Clark Elementary School throughout the year and met with students during their lunch and recess times while Officer Bloom focused on Lincoln Elementary School and Madison Elementary School. Through these lunch and recess visits, they were able to develop a rapport with the students and staff to establish a basis for trust and approachability.

They hosted a summer camp for at-risk youth called Camp C4 in the summer of 2016. They had 14 at-risk youth from Jefferson Elementary School and a nearby housing establishment. Officers Niemeyer and Bloom took the kids on a variety of field trips during the summer to help them learn more about and get involved with their community.

Officers Niemeyer and Bloom hosted two Fargo United events to focus on building community and trust in the neighborhoods they hosted them in. The events had live rap performances, hip hop dancing, bouncy houses and free food made possible by local donations.

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Top: Traffic Safety Officer Boe with a group of kids; Officers Harken and Wahl at a Christmas Party; North Side Day Shift Officers singing a little karaoke at a Christmas Party at the El Zagal Shrine; Sgts. Lykken, Pallas and Bernier showing off their beards during “No-Shave Movember” (“Sgt. Beardscapes”)

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In 2016, the Criminal Investigations Division was divided into two separate divisions now overseen by two Lieutenants. Lieutenant Jason Nelson oversees the Adult Violent Crimes, Property Crimes, and Crimes against Children; and Lieutenant Shannon Ruziska oversees the Narcotics, Metro Area Street Crimes, and the Intelligence Unit.

In 2016, detectives investigated 615 personal crimes, 860 property crimes, and 219 suspected child abuse or neglect reports (SFN 960). The child abuse or neglect reports are generated by many outside agencies and then sent to us from Cass County Social Services.

Detectives worked many cases to a successful conclusion, the following are some of the highlights from 2016: Operation Guardian Angel was a large operation targeting adults wanting to engage in sexual acts with children.

Detectives posted ads on social media and engaged in conversations with the suspects. Those that violated the law by attempting to meet with the underage children were arrested. This operation was worked in conjunction with several different city, state, and federal law enforcement personnel. In total, 18 people were arrested.

Unfortunately, two Fargo residents lost their lives violently in 2016. Cory Terlecky was murdered by an acquaintance within her home. Landon Lauwagie was arrested for her death and is currently waiting for trial. Derek Bjarnason was also murdered by an acquaintance on Christmas Eve morning, Timothy Porter is in custody for his death and is awaiting trial.

Detectives from the Fargo Police Department along with the Fire Department Arson Investigators worked a suspicious death together. At this time, it appears the deceased may have overdosed on a narcotic and then the fire started from an already ignited candle or other similar fuel source. This case is listed as an accidental death.

In late 2015, there were several home burglaries on the north side of Fargo. Detectives worked the few leads they had on these cases. Eventually, in 2016 they were able to gather enough evidence and obtain a confession from the suspect, who received a seven year federal sentence and was ordered to pay restitution.

Our detective dedicated to monitoring and registering sex offenders managed just over 200 individuals in our community. This detective also worked with the State to upgrade and update a statewide registration system that links to the State website with real time information. This allows our citizens to access up to date status and living locations of those sex offenders required to register.

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The Metro Area Street Crimes Unit is composed of two officers and one Sergeant from the Fargo Police Department along with officers from the Cass and Clay County Sheriff’s Offices, Moorhead, and West Fargo Police Departments. Its primary purpose is to address gang related crimes but also assists local agencies with apprehension and investigations into serious or recurring criminal incidents.

In 2016, the Metro Street Crimes Unit saw a change in leadership. Lieutenant Shannon Ruziska was chosen to oversee the unit in January 2016. Sergeant Jesse Jahner of the Cass county Sheriff’s Department supervised the unit until his promotion to Captain in August 2016. Sergeant Shawn Gamradt of the Fargo Police Department was chosen to replace Captain Jahner in August 2016.

In 2016, the Metro Area Street Crimes Unit classified 154 new gang members in our community. arrested 272 people, 88 of which were classified gang members.

They

In November of 2016, the Metro Area Street crimes Unit partnered with the US Marshalls Service in Operation Winter Harvest. This operation ran for 45 days and targeted persons with felony warrants that involved a gun offense or were gang related. The operation was a huge success with 27 persons fitting this criteria being arrested and several new cases being opened. Due to the success of this operation, the Metro Area Street Crimes Unit and US Marshalls Office have developed a close relationship with daily communication to coordinate our separate missions.

In addition to enforcement, the Metro Area Street Crimes Unit made numerous presentations to business groups, school staff and students and community groups to inform the community of the impact gang related crimes have on our region.

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In 2016, the Narcotics Unit saw a change in leadership with Sgt. Matt Christensen taking over as the supervisor of the unit and Lt. Shannon Ruziska being assigned to oversee the Narcotics Unit, the Metro Area Street Crimes Unit and the Intelligence Unit.

Early in 2016, the Fargo Police Department began seeing a sharp increase in medical assist calls related to opiates and opiate overdoses. The Narcotics Unit was integral in investigating these incidents to try and identify the sources of drugs that were causing the overdoses. In March, Fargo suffered its first three known deaths of 2016 related to opiate use. It quickly became apparent that the scope of the problem was much larger than we had anticipated and was getting larger.

The Narcotics Unit poured a great deal of man hours into investigating these types of cases. After one of our deaths in March, the Narcotics Unit worked roughly 26 hours straight running down leads and conducting interviews which led to several arrests for the delivery of the drugs that led to the death. During this investigation and subsequent search warrant, approximately 14.5 grams of powder Fentanyl was recovered.

The Fargo Police Department Narcotics Unit partnered with other local Narcotics Units in the area , including the Moorhead Police Department, the Cass County Drug Task Force, and the DEA. It became very clear that this problem was region wide and not isolated to the city of Fargo. In early April, a meeting was held with US Attorney Chris Myers and all of the narcotics agents in the region to come up with a strategy to combat the problem, identify the people responsible for bringing and selling the drugs in our area, and decide on a course of action about how to prosecute them once we have identified them.

From that meeting, several different avenues were identified to help combat the problem.  The “Eyes Wide Open” forums were created to help educate the public.  An aggressive approach to investigating those responsible for trafficking opiates to our area was identified as the number one priority, as well as severe sentencing recommendations for those responsible at a federal level due to the fact people were dying. 

The Narcotics Unit also began doing informational presentations to schools in our area, along with many other types of groups to include foster care agencies due to the fact that many of the people involved in these types of cases were younger individuals.

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The Fargo Police Department Narcotics Unit Detectives hit the ground running and displayed their excellent investigative skills immediately. Through executing search warrants, conducting interviews, and following up on leads, they quickly began to identify many players of the opiate problem in our area. US Attorney Chris Myers began taking cases at the federal level that were presented to him by the Narcotics Unit and federal indictments were gained for the dealers and traffickers in our area.

In 2016, the Fargo Police Department investigated 66 incidents of opiate related overdoses, and unfortunately, 13 of those people lost their lives in Fargo alone. After investigating each incident with our surrounding agencies, 15 individuals who were believed to be responsible for those overdose deaths were federally indicted. Additional indictments are forthcoming in 2017.

In addition to dealing with the opiate problem, the Narcotics Unit still had to contend with the other drugs that continue to plague our area. The majority of what we encountered in the city of Fargo this year was opiates (Heroin, Fentanyl, Furanyl Fentanyl, and various pain medications), Methamphetamine, Cocaine, Marijuana Wax (which is a Felony to possess) and of course Marijuana.

We also saw some psychedelic drugs such as LSD, MDMA (Ecstasy) and mushrooms. Property crimes, such as theft and burglary, continue to correlate with drug use in our City. Often times, drug users will commit property crimes to steal items they can sell to get money which they can then use to purchase drugs.

In 2016, the Fargo Police Narcotics Unit executed 111 search warrants on residences, hotels and motels in Fargo. The vast majority of the search warrants were obviously related to drugs, but the Narcotics Unit is also responsible for investigating prostitution and human trafficking of adults in our community. The Narcotics Unit also assists Cass County Social Services with cases they are notified about regarding drug use in the home where children are present.

The Narcotics Unit seized nearly $50,000 in cash from suspected drug dealers as well as three vehicles, and several firearms throughout the year.

The Narcotics Unit also works with the Crime Free Housing Coordinator to conduct trainings throughout the year with local rental property owners and managers about identifying the signs of drug use by tenants and how to handle those types of situations. They also conduct several informational presentations throughout the year about drug trends in our area to many different groups.

Our work is far from over in this area and our Narcotics Unit continues to work tirelessly to send the message that we will not tolerate drug traffickers in our city.

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Our Records Unit completed: Number of criminal backgrounds 1692 Number of fingerprints Total: 2,997. 2,074 were completed at our headquarters and 923 at our substation, which started the second week of February.

Deb Tellinghuisen, our Crime Free Programs Coordinator hosted four landlord training classes and completed 3,604 criminal history background requests.

The Evidence and Property Unit took in a total of 8,463 items for 2,809 cases.

The department trained for a total of 

1,118 hours of firearms training



820 hours of defensive tactics training 80 hours of critical incident response training



49 felons were captured in 2016, bringing the grand total of captured felons to 502

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In 2016, the department held its first two Cool Off with a Cop events. The events served as another opportunity to interact with the public, and create trusting and lasting relationships with the youth and adults in our community.

The Fargo Police Department implemented an area where anyone can exchange items purchased over the internet. With the increase in people buying and selling items online and through social media, we wanted to make a location people could feel safe making the exchange.

*CLICK TO WATCH*

The department created a new public service announcement targeting theft of motor vehicles. Be Safe or Be Sorry helps remind individuals that it only takes a moment to become a victim of vehicle theft, and to remember to Lock It or Lose It! This public safety announcement won an Emmy in the 2016 Upper Midwest Regional Emmy Awards!

The department continued to push information out via social media regarding crime alerts, seeking the public’s help in identifying individuals, event notifications, traffic conditions and notifications and sex offender notifications via Nextdoor.

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2016 Budget Operation Budget

$18,096,200

Expenditures

$17,885,530

Remaining at year end

$210,670

1.16% The Fargo Police Department’s expenditures were 1.16% below our fiscal year budget.

2016 Grants Byrne Justice Assistance Grant: Overtime

$47,346

North Dakota Department of Transportation Distracted Driving Grant

$6,080

North Dakota Department of Transportation Sobriety Checkpoint and DUI Saturation Patrol Grant

$25,850

North Dakota Department of Transportation Seat Belt Enforcement Grant

$10,000

North Dakota Department of Justice COPS Hiring Program (two officers over three years, year two of three)

$250,000

North Dakota Department of Transportation Underage Drinking Enforcement

$10,000

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Officer Andrea Noll

Officer Jennifer Gustafson

Officer Ryan O’Donnell

Officer Tyler Bouma

Officer Brandon Kerr

Officer Joshua Marvig

Officer Lucas Mock

Officer John Smykowski

Officer Mike Haderlie

Officer Zach Robinson

Officer Nicholas Janttie

Officer Josh Marlow

Officer Emily Schares

Officer Andrew Dotas

Officer Nicalaus Powell-Calhoun

Officer Daniel Hulbert

Officer Cory Luckow

Officer Tina Hallada

Officer Elizabeth Miller

Officer Lacey Bunkleman

121 Police Officer Entrance Exams were taken in 2016. 41 background investigations were completed.

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Deputy Chief Ross Renner

Sergeant Junell Krabbenhoft

Sergeant Matt Ysteboe

Lieutenant Chris Helmick

Sergeant Joel Erickson

Officer Annie Alzheimer 27 Years of Service

Lieutenant George Vinson

Lieutenant Travis Stefonowicz

Sergeant Mike Sanden

Sergeant Jerrod Wagner

Officer Mike Benton 10 Years of Service

Officer Kim Claus 25Years of Service

“Policing is one of America’s most noble professions. The actions of any police officer, in an instant can impact an individual for life, and even a community for generations.”

Support Specialist Kathy Rieckman 33 Years of Service

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POLICE OFFICER OF THE YEAR

SUPERVISOR OF THE YEAR

Officer Caleb Korb

Sergeant Matthew Christensen

CHIEF’S MEDAL

Officer Jesseca White

CIVILIAN OF THE YEAR

Anise Lean

DISTINGUISHED SERVICE AWARD

Officer Joseph Johnson

Officer Annie Alzheimer 33

DISTINGUISHED SERVICE AWARD

Officer Bradley Baer

Sergeant Carlos Nestler

Officer Chuck Sullivan

Cheryl Larson

Officer Jonathan Bair

Chief David Todd

Deb Tellinghuisen

Kathy Spielman

Sergeant Mark Lykken

Lieutenant Mathew Sanders

Sergeant Michael Erbes

Officer Michael Kjera

Randy Lindgren

Lieutenant Shannon Ruziska

Officer Todd Wahl

Officer Vincent Kempf 34

POLICE SERVICE AWARD

Sergeant Collin Gnoinsky

Officer Grant Kendall

Officer Terresa Durr

Sergeant Troy Hannig

Officer David Cochran

Lieutenant George Vinson

Sergeant Michael Sanden

Officer Paul Cichos

Sergeant Matthew Christensen

Sergeant Jerrod Wagner

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LIFESAVING AWARD

Officer Christopher Zimmel

Officer Bradley Cernik

Officer Ryan Jasper

Officer Samuel Bollman

Officer Kris Jacobs

Officer Justin Valenti

Officer Dustin Pattengale

Officer Michael Kjera

Officer Troy Nielsen

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COMBAT CROSS AWARD

Officer Adam Schock

Officer Amy Kingzett

Officer Bradley Cernik

Officer Aldin Golos

Officer Taylor Savageau

COMMENDABLE SERVICE AWARD

Officer Samuel Bollman

Lauren Cammack 37

MEDAL OF VALOR

SILVER STAR

Officer Joseph Johnson

Sergeant Travis Moser

Sergeant Jerrod Wagner

COMBAT CROSS AWARD

Sergeant Troy Hannig

Officer Nathan Nieman

Sergeant Shane Aberle

Officer Tyler Nord

Officer Alexander Bollman 38

COMBAT ACTION AWARD

Sergeant Matt Christensen

Sergeant Michael Sanden

Officer Jason Abel

Officer David Cochran

Officer Mark Ranum

Officer Brent Halverson

Officer Cody Gease

Officer Adam O’Brien

Officer Adam Schock

Officer Samuel Grandbois

Officer Joshua Horner

Officer Ryan Jasper

Lieutenant Michael Mitchell

Officer Corey Arnold

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COMMENDABLE SERVICE AWARD

Sergeant James VanLith

Officer Melissa Westby

CERTIFICATE OF COMMENDATION Detective Philip Swan, Officer Scott Normandin, Patrick Meyer (former Officer), and Detective Michael Lovejoy

Officer Phillip Swan

Officer Scott Normandin

Officer Patrick Meyer

Officer Michael Lovejoy

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May 13, 2016

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Chief Todd FINALLY won first place in the Chief’s and Sheriff’s Annual Burger Cook Off! 42

The Fargo Police Department hosted its 22nd annual police community picnic where local law enforcement and resource agencies came together to facilitate an environment where the community could interact with local law enforcement and learn about the resources available to them in our community. Photos from the top: K9 handler Officer Cochran with his partner Falco; Lt. Ruziska talking about the dangers of opioids; Lt. Vinson, Officer Bloom and Sgt. Volrath mingling at the picnic; Traffic Safety Officer Jordheim with the Deutscher Crash Display talking about the dangers of driving under the influence ; and Traffic Safety Unit Sgt. Kringlie with the motorcycle.

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We were honored to be a part of 5-year-old Kamden’s wish to be a super hero for a day. Chief Todd swore Kamden in as an honorary police officer to help us catch the villains that were roaming around downtown Fargo. K9 Bali also helped Super K catch some of the villains!

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Cocoa

with a

Cop

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Top: Officer Schindeldecker playing with some kids at a Party in the Park event; Officer Bloom at a daycare visit.

Bottom: Officer Siders and White at a local lemonade stand; Chief Todd with a Veteran during National Night Out 48

Top: Chief Todd at a local little girl’s Birthday Party; Officers Baer and Abel protecting downtown Fargo; Officers Schindeldecker and Jacobsen, Community Service Officer Fix and Lt. Vinson trying to blend in at Midwest Kids Fest; Officer Kingzett and Schindeldecker with Chuck-E at a Party in the Park; Deputy Chief Osmundson rewarding two little girls with a “You Got Caught” free ice cream cone ticket for wearing their bike helmets.

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Top: Downtown Resource Officers White and Normandin with a little girl at the Street Fair; Officers Schindeldecker and Bloom giving out turkeys to families in need before Thanksgiving; Officers Santangelo and Fauske out in Lindenwood Park; Officer Kingzett passing out ice cream cones on a hot day; Officer Niemeyer at Cool Off with a Cop; and Officer Thiedeman interacting with youth on his beat.

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Top Right: Officers Ryan Dietrich and Michael Bloom working an extra detail in the downtown area focusing on quality of life issues. They wrote 26 consuming alcohol in public citations, seven urinating in public citations, and one possession of marijuana citation in one night! Officer Ehresman stops by a neighborhood block party to interact with some of the children; Bottom Right: Sgt. Pallas joins Sears for their Safety Awareness event; Sgt. Lykken taking a selfie with a little girl he just rewarded with an “I Got Caught” coupon for a free ice cream cone for wearing her bike helmet.

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Bell State Bank employee and mother of Detective Loos offered her “Pay It Forward” money to our department in order to purchase a flag pole, American Flag and a Fargo Police Department Blue Line flag. Sun Electric donated the resources necessary to install the lighting for the flags.

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Fargo Police Department 222 4 St. N. Fargo, ND 58102 56