Former chief's complaint 'not substantiated'

The most recent complaint filed by former Cloquet police chief Wade Lamirande - alleging that a photograph of four uniformed police officers posing with former Cloquet mayor Dave Hallback was a violation of policy - was not sustained.

According to a letter from Commander Carey Ferrell, who is acting chief of police, when an investigation discloses insufficient evidence to sustain the complaint or fully exonerate the member, it is classified as "not sustained."

"Although your complaint against all four officers is Not Sustained, there will be department-wide coaching related to the concerns in your complaint," Ferrell wrote, thanking Lamirande for bringing his concerns to the department's attention.

The letter left a frustrated Lamirande shaking his head.

"I don't know what to say except a picture's worth a thousand words," he told the Pine Knot News. "They have the photo, so how can it be unsubstantiated? And why, if they did nothing wrong, would they implement remedial training for the entire department?"

In March, when the former chief filed the complaint against Cloquet police sergeants Tom Hallfrisch and Rick Benko along with officers Nathan Cook and Brett Reinsch, Lamirande said he had previously pointed out the alleged violation to police chief Jeff Palmer, but Palmer had taken no action, so Lamirande filed the complaint.

At the heart of his complaint is the state's Professional Conduct of Peace Officers Model Policy, which the state required the Peace Officers Standards and Training Board to develop by 1996, and which was subsequently adopted by law enforcement agencies around the state, including Cloquet.

Lamirande said that the standards are part of police officer training and the officers - and Mayor Hallback, a retired police officer - should have known better.

The policy is five pages long, and the prohibition against endorsing a candidate comes under Principle Six, which states that peace officers should not compromise their integrity by accepting, giving or soliciting any gratuity and also that they should not use "their status as a peace officer for personal, commercial or political gain."

The model policy specifically states that officers shall "not make endorsements of political candidates while on duty or while wearing the agency's official uniform."

All four officers were in uniform for the photo, standing with hands on hips or gun belts, and Hallback is holding a "Re-elect Dave Hallback for Mayor" sign in the center of the photo. The photo was posted to Facebook.

When previously contacted by the Pine Knot News, the former mayor said the photo was his, but he didn't know how it got posted to Facebook, as he avoids the social media platform. He said he asked the officers to take a photo with him because they were friends, not to use it in his campaign.

The investigation into the complaint was conducted by the Cloquet police department itself, Ferrell's letter said.

Lamirande, who is the academic program coordinator for the Fond du Lac Tribal and Community College Law Enforcement skills and training program, said he's frustrated by the simple lack of accountability.

"I've had police officers from other agencies ask me what is wrong with that place," he said. "It's not the end of the world.Simply put a letter in their file and do remedial training - for those officers only - and move on. But they will not admit they did anything wrong."