The Chaska Police Department has fired a 14-year veteran of its force following an investigation of citizens' complaints about racial and ethnic profiling.
In a news release Friday, the department said it had removed Officer Joshua Lawrenz from the force following "a complex and extensive investigation."
In a separate release Tuesday, the department said it had begun a search for a new police officer.
Lawrenz could not be reached for comment. Law Enforcement Labor Services, the union that represents Chaska police officers, said in a statement Tuesday that it believes "there was no just cause for the termination," and has filed a grievance on Lawrenz's behalf.
"Officer Lawrenz is highly decorated and well-regarded in the community," the statement said. The union said Lawrenz has no previous discipline in his file.
Lawrenz had been on paid administrative leave since September after members of the city's Latino community met with Police Chief Scott Knight to air their complaints. They also came to a City Council meeting to voice concerns about possible racial profiling and were told the city would conduct an investigation.
City officials initially thought the investigation by a private legal consultant would take about a month. It took much longer, Knight said in the news release, because it "involved many interviews and review of a great deal of data." Knight declined to disclose details of the investigation, citing the Minnesota Government Data Practices Act.
Several Latino residents addressed the council at the meeting last September, including one elderly man who said Lawrenz handcuffed him and threw him to the ground while arresting him.
