Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara argued that the money spent to hire dozens of new employees was well worth it after revealing the department is $19.6 million over budget.
At a Monday meeting of the city’s Budget Committee, O’Hara defended the spending, attributing it to three factors: contractual backpay for police employees, settlement agreement expenditures, and the expensive process of hiring and training new police officers.
O’Hara said the department has hired 174 people for sworn positions this year. 74 of those positions are community service officers who are currently studying in college as the department pays their salaries and tuition.
“At the same time, you don’t have (as many) police officers on the street,” O’Hara added…