Two stories from the Police Department.
First, the following photos are of Unit 236. a patrol vehicle driven by Officer Steve Velner on the evening of August 25, 2003. The rest of the story follows the photos:
Officer Velner was responding to a call of a medical emergency at Eden Prairie High School when his car was hit broadside by a young driver who was not paying full attention to her driving. This car is totalled, but fortunately, Officer Velner and the driver of the other vehicle were treated and released with minor injuries. It’s my understanding the Officer Velner will be back at work tomorrow. It’s not lucky to get hit by a car, but it is lucky to come out of an accident like this with only minor injuries. Officer Velner is an exceptional officer. It will be good to have him back on the streets.
The other story from our Police Department does not have such a happy ending. The story of former Eden Prairie police officer Brent Griffith has gathered its fair share of public attention over the past two weeks. Griffith is the subject of a criminal investigation by the Hennepin County Sheriff’s Department concerning allegations that he committed acts of fraud and theft involving his secondary employment with the Minnesota Vikings, where he worked as a security officer. Griffith was charged with those crimes yesterday by the Hennepin County Attorney and he will be formally booked for the charges today.
This morning’s Star Tribune carried a short story in the Metro section that is worth reading about this matter. The story emphasizes the former nature of Griffith’s employment with the City of Eden Prairie. He was terminated from employment with the City yesterday. Griffith failed in his duty to uphold the trust placed in him by our organization to enforce the laws of this country, state, and city in Eden Prairie. He not only failed in upholding the trust we placed in him, it appears that he may have broken the law himself. We cannot employ a person like this in our Police Department. So, since about 9:00 a.m. yesterday, we do not. It is an unfortunate end to a promising career.
