Law enforcement in general is a field that sees a lot of movement and turnover in staffing. In Blaine the police department has had the good fortune to have many long term employees but the department has still dealt with constantly being in a recruitment mode.

In December the department accomplished a rare feat. The department for the first time in recent memory was fully staffed. This meant that all 75 authorized positions for a licensed law enforcement professional were filled.

Throughout the years the department has always been able to provide enough officers to patrol the community but being understaffed meant the department often had to pull staff off of special assignments. The retail unit, special operations group, traffic unit, and others have all had to run short at some point to ensure that there were enough officers on the roads for general patrol and response.

In 2022 the department will be right back into recruitment mode as the authorized position allocation will be increasing. But, for a short time this December this rare accomplishment was celebrated by the City. To hear more from Chief Podany on police staffing in Blaine, BlaineMN.gov/PoliceStaff.

For more information about the Blaine Police Department, visit BlaineMN.gov/Police.