Fargo police chief sits down with VNL and responds to intense criticism

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FARGO, ND (Valley News Live) – Fargo’s police chief is now responding to harsh criticism of his leadership for the department.

Valley News Team’s Justin Betti sat down for an interview with the chief and learned that David Zibolski wanted the city to provide more mental health resources for officers. It comes after our investigation showed 35 officers have left the force in the past 18 months.

In the interview, the boss says he doesn’t think the sky is falling and he links his department’s struggles to growing pains.

“In a way, I think that’s true. Even beyond the police department, I think that’s true. You’re starting to see different issues that affect medium to large departments, and to be successful as a police department, we have to adapt to that and understand that. You don’t always have to agree with everything,” explains the chef.

Zibolski goes on to say that being a police officer is stressful these days and he hopes the city’s action and performance plan can help with that.

“We want to do everything we can to keep our officers healthy,” Zibolski says. “And the better they are, the better their service to the community.”

The chief names the five new officers sworn in the week of January 24 as a sign of a brighter future.

“They are aware of what is happening. But they are still committed to serving the community. And we ask a lot of our cops. But they are always ready to serve,” says Zibolski. “They are dedicated to the organization and to the community. And it’s really gratifying from my point of view to know that there are still people who want to do this work. And those numbers are going down, not just here, but across the country. »

The chief also told Valley News Live that he hopes the city will create some form of retention bonus for officers who remain in the department. The performance action plan proposed by the city took two to three weeks to develop.

Mayor Tim Mahoney said the city will re-evaluate Zibolski in six to eight weeks with an expected six-month plan.

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