Polk County Sheriff Jim Tadman joined KROX radio Wednesday to reflect the tragedies surrounding the deaths of George Floyd while detained by four now-former Minneapolis Police Officers and Grand Forks Police Officer Cody Holte while responding to an active shooting involving a suspect and deputies of the Grand Forks Sheriff’s Office.
The loss of Officer Holte undoubtedly hit law enforcement hard in the Crookston and Polk County communities as Polk County deputies, as well as Crookston and East Grand Forks police officers, work alongside Grand Forks officers and deputies as part of various Grand Forks Regional Response Teams from SWAT to search and rescue. Tadman said the sheriff’s office works hand-in-hand with agencies on both sides of the state boundary and that this has been a difficult week. “That has been very difficult on not only our office, Grand Forks, East Grand Forks, and Crookston because we work closely like you said,” said Tadman. “We’re part of the (Grand Forks Regional) response team. We have officers, so does Crookston and East Grand (Forks). And also, we work hand-in-hand with our boat and water, our drone trying to get together to do training with that. We’re close enough, our county butts up with Grand Forks, ND. It’s another state but we treat them as another agency and if they need assistance, we’re going to be there for them. It’s been a difficult week.”
Tadman expressed his sympathies to the family of Officer Holte and said he hopes he’s never in the situation where he has to inform loved ones that someone died while doing their job. Adding that during this day in age, you have to be mentally and physically prepared because there is no such thing as a routine call. “We’re trying to prepare our officers,” said Tadman. “And make sure, one, that they’re healthy mentally and physically. And that they are prepared and don’t take it that this is just another call anymore. It seems like everything is amped up.”
Sheriff Tadman also discussed the death of George Floyd, the protests, and the riots, that took place in the Twin Cities, Bemidji, and Fargo as well as all over the country. Polk County Deputies have responded to several calls for assistance across the region and state during the unrest.
Tadman, who has been the department’s use of force instructor since 1993, said he couldn’t wrap his head around seeing what happened to George Floyd. “We have officers, they are human beings, they make mistakes,” said Tadman. “We train very hard for everything and during a time, can something happen, yes. But I can’t wrap my head around seeing something like that and them not saying you’ve got your hand, your knee, this here and have an outcome like that.”
Tadman said he believes people should protest as is their right but when it comes down to people vandalizing and destructing small businesses to victimize other people isn’t going to do any good. “I am all for protesting,” said Tadman. “I believe that people have a right to bring it, protest and show your feelings but when it comes down to people that mix and mingle with good protesters and out vandalizing and the destruction of our small business that for how long now haven’t been able to open. Now they are getting prepared to open and they have shut down again without any income. It’s not like it’s coming from the governor, it’s destruction and maybe they have insurance. But I don’t know how doing this and victimizing other people is going to bring back George Floyd or do any good.”
Tadman said that officers get involved when there is too much criminal activity if people are destroying the community, but they also have to take steps to protect the protesters even when it’s an inconvenience for others. “We want to keep the protesters to be able to do what they can but when it gets to be too much criminal activity we have to step in to say – we have to shut this down because you’re destroying our community,” said Tadman. “I don’t think anybody in Polk County wants their property wrecked either. That’s the hard part where we come in. When do we say no? You know blocking highways and that, people use that for getting to work. It’s on faith and you get trucks going down and now people are going to get hit. We have to look at the safety of that and put it in perspective to make a decision and that’s the hard part. Some people are happy because we’re shutting it down, but we have to do something if it gets unsafe.”
Full interview with Polk County Sheriff Jim Tadman –
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