The city of Chaska has placed a 15-year veteran of its police force on administrative leave amid an investigation of citizens' complaints of racial and ethnic profiling.
The officer, whose name has not been released, was placed on leave about 10 days ago, about a week after members of the city's Latino community met with Police Chief Scott Knight to air their complaints, City Administrator Matt Podhrasky said Thursday.
About 25 Latino residents of Chaska showed up at a City Council meeting Monday night, where they voiced concerns about possible racial profiling but also thanked city officials for responding to their complaints.
Podhrasky said the city is the process of hiring a private group to conduct the investigation, which should take about a month.
"We take these complaints very seriously," he said. "It's very important that we get the right answers [in the investigation]."
Adriana Cerrillo, a Minneapolis activist who accompanied the group to the council meeting and served as translator for some residents, said Thursday, "We would like to have a better relationship" with the department.
Cerrillo said she is pleased with the way that police officials and the council have responded so far.
On Monday night, several Latino residents addressed the council, including one older man who described the officer's behavior as "unacceptable."
