NHPD 2023 Year End Report
2023
Annual Report
New Hope Police Department
Lorilee Stafford
City of New Hope
2023
Annual Report
1
Letter from the Chief
Tim Hoyt, Chief of Police
As the old saying goes, “what a difference a year makes.” While we
as people naturally change with the time, this was never truer for me,
personally, over the past couple of years. My time as acting City
Manager was a professional journey that I will look back upon fondly
and I’m so proud of how our entire city staff handled themselves
during the hiring transition of our new City Manager. I can say with
great confidence that City Hall is in great hands – as always – as I get
back to having a single title: Chief of Police.
This past year our police department maintained full staffing, both
sworn and non-sworn, which enabled us to remain steadfast in our
commitment and service to New Hope without the burden of
staffing shortages that we are seeing all around us. I truly believe that
our dedication and professionalism is second-to-none as we
endeavor to keep our community safe and be a police department
that our residents can be proud of.
I look forward to continuing to join with our community as we work
toward the common goal of learning from the past to better the
future. Trust is the key to positive change, and the New Hope Police
Department will lead by example in earning that trust.
Sincerely,
Chief Tim Hoyt
2
Mission Statement
It is the mission of the New Hope Police Department to protect the lives and
property of our residents and visitors, to reduce fear and enhance safety, and to
work side by side with our diverse community. We are bound to do so with honor
and integrity while holding each other to the highest of standards in order to earn
public trust.
Vision Statement
To professionally serve – as well as represent – our diverse community as we
strive for togetherness through accountability and transparency, all while
ensuring New Hope continues to be a safe place to live, work and visit.
Mission and Vision Statements
3
New Hope Police Department
Organizational Chart
4
Department Divisions
-Patrol-
Captain Dave Johnson
Captain Dave Johnson has been the head of the patrol division
since he was appointed in 2021. He is responsible for all duties
related to the patrol division. The patrol division currently is
comprised of 24 officers. Including six sergeants, sixteen patrol
officers, one K9 team, and one dedicated traffic officer. The
patrol division is responsible for many duties including but not
limited to, field training program, firearms program, defense
and arrest tactics program, SWAT, mobile field force
operations, predatory offender registration, citizens’ police
academy, police reserves, and police explorers. Also under the
supervision of Captain Johnson are four full time community
service officers and one animal control officer.
Patrol Captain
Internal AffairsMobile Field
ForcePatrol
Patrol
Sergeants
Patrol Officers
K9 OfficersReservesCommunity
Service OfficersTraffic OfficerExplorers
SWATAnimal Control
Captain Johnson oversees the Explorer’s program which continued to be on hold in 2023 while staff
from New Hope, Crystal and Robbinsdale developed a plan to go forward with a Tri-City Explorer Post.
The post will consist of participants from the Cities of New Hope, Crystal and Robbinsdale and will start
in the fall of 2024. Exploring provides training and skill development related to a career in law
enforcement and allows a close-up view of what police officers do on a daily basis. The Explorer group
generally meets September through April each year, closing out with a conference for posts throughout
the state to show off their newly learned skills. The Explorer program is an excellent opportunity to
improve personal communication skills, build confidence, become more comfortable speaking in public
and other skills required for a future career in any field.
5
Department Divisions
-Administrative Division-
Captain Scott Slawson
Captain Scott Slawson heads the administrative division of the
department. This division includes investigations, Clerical
Office Supervisor, office support staff, embedded social
worker and the Joint Community Police Partnership liasion. In
2023 there was a total of 539 cases assigned to four
investigators within the department. Cases also come to this
division by way of Hennepin County Child Protection and
Hennepin County Adult Protection. This is in addition to the
traditional 911 calls and information that investigators obtain
from citizens and confidential informants. In addition to
investigations, Captain Slawson supervises an investigator who
is assigned to the Hennepin County Violent Offender Task
Force, and two school resource officers at Cooper High
School (note that SRO’s are on hold as of fall 2023.
Administrative
Captain
Investigations
Investigators
Property/Evidence
Technician
Drug Task Force School Resource
Officers
Clerical/Office
Supervisor
Clerical Staff
Embedded Social
Worker
Joint Community
Police Partnership
2023 saw another change in the embedded social worker assigned to the department by Hennepin
County as we welcomed Thomas Ford into the role. The department also added a Hennepin
County Joint Community Police Partnership liaison to the team, Christina Gillespie. Another
addition to the Investigations Division was a new position of Property and Evidence Technician.
Melissa DeLeeuw is responsible for maintaining the department’s evidence room and making sure
property is returned or properly disposed of when a case comes to conclusion.
6
Department Divisions
-Support Staff/Clerical-
The Support Service Division is divided into two areas: Clerical
and Police Administrative Support. Jeana Allen-Hatcher and her
full-time staff (Rhonda Peske, Riley McIlrath and Magaly
Velasquez), along with one part-time clerk (Miranda Reed),
provide a variety of technical, clerical and information
technology services. Other duties of this division include
customer service, records management, retention, processing
and dissemination of police reports, processing of employee and
volunteer background checks, submitting cases to the city and
county attorneys, data practices, state compliance
requirements and entering/auditing information into the
National Crime Information Center system.
The clerical staff are responsible for all of the crime reporting
to the national database for the Uniformed Crime Report
(UCR). All crimes are coded under a system of 64 codes which
are sent to the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension and the FBI
for the purpose of maintaining and releasing statistical data on
crime rates.
The police department continues to utilize LETG (Law
Enforcement Technology Group) for records management. This
program is reaching end of life so the department will be
transitioning in the future to a new record management system.
The consortium comprised of New Hope, Hopkins, and
Plymouth, continued to attend product demonstrations in 2023.
Proposals have been received and the consortium is going to be
deciding on which product will be the best fit.
Jeana Allen-Hatcher
Office/Clerical Supervisor
Rhonda Peske
Full Time Clerk
Riley McIlrath
Full Time Clerk
Magaly Velasquez
Full Time Clerk
7
Department Divisions
-Investigations-
Investigator Galli
Investigator Fritzke
Investigator Bardon
Investigator Keithahn
The New Hope Investigations team consists of four detectives, one
investigator that is assigned to the Hennepin County Violent Offender Task
Force, as well as two full-time school resource officers. Investigations is under
the Administration Division.
Investigators handle cases generated by the patrol division that require
additional follow -up, which includes obtaining search warrants to gather
evidence, interviewing subjects, and submitting cases to prosecution for
criminal charges.
The team has many partnerships and resources that help to bring all the parts
of a case together. These include CLEAR, Hennepin County CISA, Hennepin
County Crime Lab and The BCA (Bureau of Criminal Apprehension).
Once all pieces of the case have been put together investigators then work
closely with both the New Hope City Attorney’s Office, as well as the
Hennepin County Attorney’s Office, to pursue the best possible case
outcomes.
Investigators also conduct background checks for various city permits such as,
massage practice licenses, liquor licenses, and more as of August 1st TCH
licenses. They also facilitate intelligence sharing with other local, state and
federal law enforcement agencies.
In 2023, the investigations team worked on 539 cases.
8
Department Divisions
-K9-
2023 was a transitional year for our K-9 division. Officer
Fitzmaurice partnered with K-9 Nyx mid-way through
the year. They started doing basic training with Sgt.
Robles until August when the 12-week certification
course began for the team. Officer Fitzmaurice and K-9
Nyx completed their training on November 10th with
Nyx receiving his patrol certification through United
States Police Canine Association (USPCA) and National
Police Canine Association (NPCA), and his narcotics
certification through USPCA.
At the end of September Sergeant Robles traveled to
Foley Alabama where he was awarded the 2022
(USPCA) National Patrol Case of the Year Award. In
February 2022, while an officer, Sgt. Robles and K-9
partner Drago responded to a call about a pursuit
ending in a crash with the passenger fleeing and firing
shots at the responding officer on the scene. Upon
arrival, Officer Robles and Drago set up a perimeter and
started a track, which led to the safe apprehension of
the suspect. Robles and Drago were also instrumental in
recovering the firearm used through their work
directing a second K-9 team. Although Sgt. Robles no
longer has a K-9 partner he is currently in charge of the
department’s K-9 division.
Officer Fitzmaurice and K9 Nyx
Sergeant Robles and K9 Drago
9
Department Divisions
-New Hope SWAT Team-
The SWAT team uses Camp Ripley as the site for their
weeklong training and mini training sessions. Camp Ripley
Training Center is a 53,000-acre facility located near Little
Falls, MN. It features numerous ranges and state-of-the-
art facilities to support military and civilian agency training
requirements.
SWAT members utilize the outdoor rifle and handgun
ranges, performed force-on-force scenarios using paint
marking rounds, and trained in one of the camp’s
scenario-based locations. The training center offers
unique opportunities for officers to train more freely
using flash-bangs and blank ammunition; activities that are
not allowed in civilian facilities because they would cause
too much disruption and space is limited.
New Hope had 11 officers on the
SWAT team in 2023. This included
one officer acting as a negotiator and
one as a driver of the MRAP.
Aside from the normal training that is
done annually at Camp Ripley the
team trained in Forest Lake, Flint Hills,
and the Scale Regional Training
Facility.
10
Department Divisions
-Mobile Field Force (MFF)-
The New Hope Police Department is part of the
West Command Mobile Field Force (WCMFF).
Law enforcement officers from the following
agencies are also participating in WCMFF:
Airport, Bloomington, Brooklyn Center,
Brooklyn Park, Champlin, Corcoran, Crystal,
Deephaven, Eden Prairie, Edina, Golden Valley,
Hopkins, Hennepin County Sheriff’s, Maple
Grove, Medina, Minnetrista, Minnetonka, New
Hope, Orono, Osseo, Plymouth, Richfield,
Robbinsdale, Rogers, St. Louis Park, South Lake
Minnetonka, Wayzata, West Hennepin Public
Safety and University of Minnesota.
Participating personnel in 2023 with the
New Hope Police Department’s Contingent
were Sergeant Josh Eernisse, Officer Tony
Gust, Officer Mike Keithahn, Officer Brad
Kallio, Officer Corey Cracknell, Officer
Rajaneé Michael, Officer William Leon-
Aguilar, Officer Josh Arthur, Officer Matt
Collier, and Officer Lee Larson.
The WCMFF provides quarterly training to
all members with the different platoons
being responsible for hosting a training
session. These trainings have included basic
movements, legal updates, live scenarios
involving over 50 civilian role players.
11
Department Divisions
-Animal Control-
Animal Control Officer (ACO) Tom Mahan works for both the New Hope and
Crystal Police Departments. He has been serving these cities for the past 26 years.
ACO Mahan encountered or responded to 209 animal-related incidents during the
period of January 1 to December 31, 2023. The number of citizen complaints was
186 or 89% and the number of officer-initiated complaints was 23 or 11%.
Of the 186 citizen complaints, 54 (29%) concerned dogs at large, resulting in two
(4%) citations, 11 (20%) written warnings and seven (13%) impounds. Overall,
citizen complaints included 100 (54%) concerning dogs, resulting in three (3%)
citations, 14 (14%) written warnings and 16 (16%) impounds. There were nine dog
bites, eight passed through PUPS quarantine without signs of illness and one was
reported after the quarantine period. Four of the dogs were labeled Potentially
Dangerous. There were four reports of dogs being aggressive: two were dog to
dog aggression, one owner received a citation, one was a verbal warning. There
were 32 (17%) citizen complaints concerning cats, 30 or 94% were cats at large.
These calls resulted in one (3%) citation, two (6%) written warnings and 11 (34%)
impounds. There was one reported cat bite which passed through a home
quarantine with no signs of illness. Live traps were used at two properties to
catch stray cats. There were 54 (29%) citizen complaints concerning other animals
with no enforcement actions taken. There was one report of a bat exposure. The
bat tested negative for rabies.
The 23 officer-initiated incidents included 22 (96%) involving dogs (21 involved dog
licenses and one dog at large), resulting in four (18%) citations and 17 (77%)
written warnings. There was one (4%) officer-initiated incident involving an injured
stray cat taken to a veterinarian. There were no officer-initiated incidents involving
other animals.
ACO Mahan was also involved in non-animal related calls for service, including:
document deliveries, traffic control at accidents and fire calls; motorist assists;
medical assists; utility checks; found bicycles; assists at warrant and crime scenes;
and vehicle and residential lock outs. He was able to complete three of four
inspections of homes with permits-to-exceed the number of pets.
When stats for both cities are combined, He encountered or responded to 447
animal-involved incidents during 2023: 209 (47%) in New Hope and 238 (53%) in
Crystal. The combined number of citizen complaints was 416 (93%) and the
number of officer-initiated complaints was 31 (7%).
ACO Mahan also continued the efforts to decrease or maintain a low the number
of Canada geese (and thereby decrease the number of complaints about goose
feces) in both cities’ parks by addling goose eggs. He obtained the necessary
permits from the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service and the Minnesota DNR. He spent
over five hours, but only located one nest containing 5 eggs in and around
Northwood Park in New Hope and Bassett Creek Park in Crystal.
Tom Mahan
Animal control Officer
12
Department Divisions
-Reserves-
The New Hope Police
Reserve Unit is a volunteer
organization of the New
Hope Police Department.
The Reserve “mission
statement” reads:
To provide services for the New
Hope Police Department that
are compatible with the charter
and bylaws of the Reserve Unit.
In addition, provide services to
the City of New Hope, School
District 281 and other
community organizations…
when the requests do not
conflict with the commitments
to the Police Department.
During 2023, the number of reserve patrol officers remained the same, with only
five reserve officers. We had one reserve cadet (Alex Peters) who withdrew from
the cadet program before completion. Alex Trdan was promoted to Senior Patrol
Officer at the end of the year.
For 2023, reserve officer activity hours (1201) decreased by 26% when compared
to 2022 (1623 hours), and 46% lower than the average of the prior decade (2238
hours). When the hours are normalized by the number of reserve officers on the
unit, then our per-officer hours (240) is 3% lower than that of 2022 (258) and 5%
above the prior decade (219).
Due to the willingness of reserve members to participate in various festivals and
local activities, the reserve unit assisted nearby cities for six city festivals and eight
other community events in 2023, including Crystal Frolics. They spent 113 hours
assisting other cities, compared to 114 hours on average over the last ten years.
Without a New Hope city festival in 2023, the police reserves still assisted with
several other city-related events, for 61 hours.
The unit spent 5 hours on one emergency call-out in 2023, compared with 7
hours on one call-out event in 2022. The only call-out was a traffic incident
resulting in a pedestrian fatality.
The reserve unit maintained Friday and Saturday patrol activity (7 PM – 2AM)
during 2023, although our patrol schedule has been curtailed to mostly just Fridays
due to our membership decline. Our patrol hours (512) were down 32% from
last year (757 hours). Our 2023 patrol hours were 51% lower than our ten-year
average (1056). If patrol hours are normalized by the number of available reserve
officers, the per-officer patrol hours in 2023 (102) is just 4% lower than the
average (106) over the past decade
The New Hope Police Reserves continued their ongoing security detail at New
Hope Church on Sunday mornings. These duties consist primarily of a parking lot
presence, although we perform security walk-throughs of the church as well. In
2023, the reserve unit provided 194 hours of security detail for New Hope
Church.
Training consumes a significant amount of time for each Reserve officer. The
Reserve unit received 276 hours of training, including cadet training, First
Responder (medical assistance for the “first on the scene”), tasers, and driving
safety. Unit meetings are conducted on the second Tuesday of each month and in
addition to customary business activities, “refresher” training sessions are held
covering a variety of topics. In addition, senior reserve officers are involved in
providing instruction to junior officers. In 2023, we resumed some training that
had been deferred because of availability: We had firearms training for the first
time in four years, and the Hennepin County Reserve School was offered again. In
2023, the unit spent 168 hours in training, compared to 276 hours in 2022. Our
last-decade average for training is 289 hours, so 2023 saw a reduction of total
training hours from our average.
2023 New Hope Reserve
Officer of the Year:
John Monson - for consistently
exceeding performance
expectations and in recognition of
his dedication/commitment to
Reserve initiatives and overall
service to the City of New Hope
and the New Hope Police
Department. Reserve Officer
Monson volunteered 281 hours
during 2023.
2023 Honorable Mention
Plaque:
Alex Trdan - volunteered 243
hours during 2023.
13
Department Divisions
-Crime Prevention/Community
Relations-
In 2023 Officer Kallio planned and hosted a multitude of
community engagement activities. For the first time this year on
Night to Unite a neighborhood was selected randomly from all
registrations for a department hosted Ultimate Experience with
food provided and grilled by Officer Kallio and City Council
Member Isenberg. The Blue Santa event for 2023 once again was
well attended and guests did not have to travel in a blizzard this
time! The New Hope Police Department hosted 11 families with
26 children who participated in crafts and games, ate pizza and
treats, and went home with gifts for all to put under the tree.
2024 promises to be another year of great community events.
Officer Brad Kallio
Crime Prevention and
Community Relations
The New Hope Police Department
continues to offer a variety of programs to
encourage New Hope residents to become
involved with crime prevention and
community service, including:
• National Night out and New Hope’s
Night to Unite(NNO/NTU)
• Neighborhood Watch Program
• Citizen’s Police Academy
• New Hope Crime Prevention Fund
Board
• Crime Free Multi-Housing(CFMH)
• Annual Bicycle Rodeo and Bicycle Theft
Prevention
• Coffee with a Cop
• Copsicles
• Meals on Wheels
• Safety Camp
• Blue Santa
• Car Seat Checks and Clinics
Above: Winning neighborhood of the Ultimate Picnic
Below: Staff at Blue Santa event with the man himself.
14
Officer Wellness and
Peer Support Team
Officer wellness and mental health is a major
focus for our department. During their careers,
each police officer is likely to encounter between
400 to 600 traumatic events. Most citizens will
experience between three or four in their
lifetime. With that statistic in mind our
department is taking continual steps to ensure
the mental well being of our staff. We currently
have five members of our department, three
sworn and two civilian, that are a part of a Tri-
City Peer Support team. This team is comprised
of members from New Hope, Crystal and
Robbinsdale. These individuals have gone
through 30 hours of initial training which included
information on mental health, how to recognize
someone in crisis, various scenarios, etc. They
have also recently finished a two-day 16-hour
refresher course. The peer support team is
available to staff 24/7 for one on one, group, or
critical incident response.
Along with our peer support team our
department contracts with LE-AST Services for
required yearly mental health checks for all
sworn staff.
Officer Britni Austin
Officer Tony Gust
Officer William Leon-Aguilar
Administrative Specialist
Lorilee Stafford
Office Supervisor
Jeana Allen-Hatcher
15
2023 Department Training
In 2023, all sworn police personnel completed POST mandated use of force training and firearm
training.
Use of force training consisted of the following:
• MN POST Board Learning objectives
• MN State Statutes pertaining to use of force and deadly force
• New Hope Police Department Policies pertaining to use of force and deadly force
• Proficiency in unarmed control measures. Skills were taught, and practiced, by all sworn officers
in a controlled environment.
Firearms Training consisted of the following:
• New Equipment familiarization, training and qualifications.
• Pistol optics rolled out to entire department
• New 40 mm less lethal systems deployed in all police vehicles
• MN POST Board approved course of fire for handguns and department issued rifles
• Additional drills and training with assigned firearms
2024 Training Goals
• Continue our joint-training with neighboring police
departments for purposes of strengthening our
skills and response to mass casualty and critical
incident type situations.
• Continue scenario-based training for officers, to
strengthen decision making skills in stressful and
rapidly evolving situations.
• As part of the department’s ongoing succession
planning, officers selected for new positions within
the department including SWAT, Mobile Field
Force, and Investigations will receive additional
training and attend courses in preparation for their
new assignments.
• Supervisory and Command Staff will receive
additional training sponsored by FEMA to advance
their skills in emergency management.
All sworn officers utilize Patrol Online for a wide range of training courses. Patrol Online is
self-paced and officers can complete trainings on shift throughout the year. The topics range
from mandatory OSHA classes to legal seminars to mental health response and awareness.
Minnesota Legislature approved a
Public Safety Aid fund package in
2023 providing funds to public
safety agencies across the state.
These funds are dedicated to public
safety related needs. In 2024 the
department will be adding new
technology with some of the funds
provided. Training will be scheduled
and implemented as these different
things arrive and are put into use.
16
Selected Crime Stats
-Special Enforcement-
TZD (Towards Zero Deaths) -
Traffic and DWI Enforcement
The New Hope Police Department
participated in the Towards Zero
Deaths (TZD) grant again in 2023,
funded by the State of Minnesota.
TZD is the state’s cornerstone traffic
safety program utilizing an
enforcement and educational approach
to lowering the number of traffic
crashes, injuries and deaths in
Minnesota.
The city also utilizes a speed trailer,
which not only deters drivers, but acts
as a data collection device, monitoring
traffic volume and vehicle speeds. The
data derived allows the department to
more effectively place a patrol officer
for enforcement and education.
Citizens can also request that the
speed trailer be placed in “problem
areas.”
TZD (Towards Zero Deaths) New Hope only
Stats:
• New Hope Officers Participating: 11
• Hours Worked: 337
• Total Traffic stops: 571
• Total arrests: 32
• DWI: 17
• Not a drop/under 21: 0
• Speed Citations: 91
• Speed Warnings: 4
• Unlicensed (DAS/DAR/DAC) Citations: 82
• Move Over Citations: 1
• Use of Cell Phone Citations: 16
• Use of Cell Phone Warnings: 23
• Seatbelt Citations: 4
• Seatbelt Warnings: 4
• Child Restraint Citations: 0
• Equipment Citations: 36
• Equipment Warnings: 105
• Other Moving Violation Citations: 2
17
January 104
February 99
March 74
April 74
May 106
June 72
July 80
August 104
September 73
October 110
November 89
December 67
Selected Crime Stats
NIBRS
NIBRS GROUP A CATEGORIES
• Arson
• Animal Cruelty
• Assault
• Bribery
• Burglary/Breaking and Entering
• Counterfeiting/Forgery
• Destruction/Damage/Vandalism of
Property
• Drug/Narcotic Offenses
• Embezzlement
• Extortion/Blackmail
• Fraud
• Gambling
• Homicide
• Human Trafficking
• Kidnapping/Abduction
• Larceny/Theft
• Motor Vehicle Theft
• Pornography/Obscene Material
• Prostitution
• Robbery
• Sex Offenses
• Stolen Property
• Weapon Law Violations
Crimes are added to the FBI crime
statistics report through the National
Incident-Based Reporting System or
NIBRS. NIBRS has a coding system
consisting of 62 codes related to Part A
and Part B crimes. Below is 2023 Part A
crime information totals reported for the
City of New Hope.
18
Offense Total
Arrests
Bad Checks
(Decommissioned January
2022)
0
Curfew/Loitering/Vagrancy
Violations 0
Disorderly Conduct 5
Driving Under the Influence 51
Drunkenness
(Decommissioned January
2022)
0
Family Offenses, Nonviolent 0
Liquor Law Violations 2
Peeping Tom
(Decommissioned January
2022)
0
Runaway 0
Trespass of Real Property 8
All Other Offenses 35
Grand Total 101
Selected Crime Stats
NIBRS GROUP B CATEGORIES
• Bad Checks
• Curfew/Loitering/Vagrancy
• Disorderly Conduct
• Driving Under the Influence
• Drunkenness
• Family Offenses, Nonviolent
• Liquor Law Violations
• Peeping Tom
• Runaway
• Trespass of Real Property
• All Other Offenses (i.e. unlawful
assembly, boating law violations,
conditional release violations, etc.)
NIBRS
Listed below are the Group B
crime statistics reported by the
City of New Hope in 2023
19
2023 Selected Traffic
Stats Breakdown
Citations
Issued
Warnings
Issued
Total
Speed 241 178 419
No MN Driver’s License 67 1 68
DAS, DAR, Canc-IPS 149 7 156
Stop Sign Violations 72 47 119
Inattentive Driving 5 3 8
Equipment Violations 2 38 40
Insurance Violations 44 3 47
Cellphone Violations 68 78 146
Total 648 355 1003
Selected Crime Stats
-Traffic Unit-
After being suspended for two years 2023 saw the return of a
dedicated traffic officer. The traffic unit is responsible for increased
traffic contacts, investigating traffic related complaints, enforcing
commercial vehicle laws and drug interdiction. The traffic officer is
also a certified cars seat installation technician and teaches
defensive driving courses in the city.
The goal of the traffic unit is to provide education to the public,
while reducing the number of crashes within the city’s limits. This
high visibility enforcement has proven to be one of the most
effective tools in reducing property damage, injuries, and death
from traffic-related crashes.
In 2023 our traffic officer was the initiating officer of 1260 vehicle stops. Of those stops
there were 1274 offenses reported through citations, written warnings, and verbal
warnings. Ten of the stops resulted in DWI arrests and seven resulted in arrests for
narcotics offenses.
Ben Rouse
Traffic Officer