Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara, who was appointed to oversee reforms in the wake of George Floyd’s killing, has chosen to resign rather than face disciplinary action for interfering in an investigation into his conduct, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey announced Tuesday.
O’Hara, who recently led the local police Federal immigration campaign in the cityHe was under investigation for allegedly having intimate relations with city employees.
Although the allegations were never proven, Fry said investigators found that O’Hara interfered with the investigation. He is accused of deleting a calling card from his city-issued cell phone in an attempt to protect evidence and telling another city employee about the investigation after he was told to keep the matter quiet, according to a written reprimand obtained by The Associated Press.
The mayor told O’Hara that he would be disciplined, which could include being fired. Frey said he chose to resign instead.
“It was a very painful decision, but I concluded that this was necessary to maintain public trust, and this was the right way forward as a city,” Fry said.
“Trust is not secondary to the job. It is the job,” he added.
Mayor’s Office spokeswoman Jennifer Loer said the city still has 17 open complaints against O’Hara — separate from the investigation that led to disciplinary action — and will continue to investigate. Lore was unable to comment on the nature of those complaints.
O’Hara did not immediately respond to a LinkedIn message seeking comment.
O’Hara became chief in 2022 as the department was at the center of a nationwide reckoning over racism and brutality in policing. Two years ago, Floyd, a Black man, was killed by a white officer in Minneapolis, igniting global Black Lives Matter protests and calls to defund the police.
Last year, Minneapolis entered into an agreement with the federal government to reform police training and use of force policies in the wake of Floyd’s killing. The US Department of Justice under President Donald Trump canceled the agreement months later.
O’Hara oversaw law enforcement’s response to the fatal crash Catholic school shooting announcement Last August.
he She criticized immigration enforcement methods In December, after a federal agent knelt on a woman’s back during her arrest, then tried to drag her into a car. Minneapolis police faced scrutiny from all sides during Trump’s anti-immigration crackdown by people who believed officers were helping or hindering federal agents and protests.
Assistant Police Chief Katie Blackwell has stepped in to lead the department during the search for a new chief, Frye said.