St. Paul police chief Todd Axtell was glad the spotlight was on his officers instead of him.
“I gotta tell ya, I’m glad a camera wasn’t on me,” he told Dave Lee on the WCCO Morning News. “I had a tear in my eye.”
“This is a pivotal moment in modern-day policing,” he said. “I truly believe out of every tragedy that occurs there’s something positive that can happen as you seize on that opportunity.”
Axtell said member of the St. Paul police department are distressed about the conduct of police in the that videotaped confrontation, conduct which he said does not reflect the values of most of the officers throughout the US.
“Specifically in St. Paul, for sure.”
Those officers in the capital city are back out again Tuesday after Axtell said they’ve been working to exhaustion over the past week.
The chief has been taking the time to meet in person with a number of officers.
“Just looking into the officers’ eyes, the way they are, you can just see they are exhausted,” Axtell said, who feels maybe the next three days can provide some relief.
“I’m just really hoping that we can catch a break here pretty quick that I can get these officers some rest,” he said. “As we know, sleep deprivation really affects our ability to provide the best service we possibly can.”
Axtell said with unrest and anxiety appearing to subside, his department’s posture has changed in recent days. He credits the deployment of the National Guard and additional help of the state patrol and other regional agencies has provided adequate personnel throughout the city.
Monday night was considered relatively peaceful in St. Paul, although Axtell said at least 55 people were arrested for curfew violations, many of those arrests taking place at the capitol building after people moved there from the rally at the Governor’s residence.
Axtell said putting a curfew in place was a “game-changer” for law enforcement, enabling them to distinguish between people legitimately out in the community and those who are there in blatant violation of the law.
Despite the stressful times that has stretched personnel to the limit, Axtell said he has already assembled an investigative team to join with federal authorities to prosecute those who started fires that caused damage in more than 100 St. Paul businesses last week.
“There will be a thorough review of any and all evidence that we can collect to include pictures and video,” he said. “I would not be surprised if we do get some arrests. I want to send a message to people that think the can come into St. Paul and victimize our community in this way. Even if though you may have a mask on, make no mistake about it, we’ll be able to identify you.”