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Residents raise concerns about contracted Orono police; city staff to contact Orono and bring issue to police commission
Summary
Two residents described alleged investigative shortcomings by the contracted Orono Police Department. City staff said they would contact Orono leadership and raise the matter at the next police commission meeting; the Orono-contracted department also presented a December activity report.
Several Mound-area residents used the public-comment period on Jan. 14 to urge the city to press Orono — which provides contracted police services to Mound — for an independent review after a resident said her 2021 complaint was handled poorly.
Kelly Kaiser, a Mound resident, told the council her report of a crime in March 2021 was repeatedly mishandled, that evidence she provided was not reviewed or forwarded to the prosecutor and that internal case notes omitted some interactions. She said she filed a formal complaint in late October and that the department’s planned internal handling created a perceived conflict of interest; she requested a third-party review.
Jay Nygard, another resident, described multiple adverse experiences with the Orono Police Department over many years and urged the council to use the city’s contract leverage to demand better service or consider alternatives such as the Hennepin County Sheriff.
City staff said Mound has a contract with Orono for police services and that any internal-disciplinary question is primarily Orono’s responsibility, but City Manager Jesse Dixon said he would contact the Orono chief and bring the matter up at the joint police commission meeting next quarter. Staff also said they would follow up on the resident’s request for an outside review and report back to the council.
The Orono-contracted police representative provided a December activity summary at the meeting: the department reported 76 calls for service in December covering a range of incidents, said there had been no spike in activity, and noted staffing updates — including a new investigative sergeant, a new investigator, and an officer moving through field training phases.
