The SFPD created a Diversity position today;
The Sioux Falls Police Department is creating a new position to build relationships in the community, particularly with the many diverse groups that exist in Sioux Falls. Officer Cynthia Holmquest was recently selected as the first Community Resource Officer and will begin her new duties on Monday, August 14, 2017.
The Community Resource Officer will become the primary contact for minority groups, religious organizations, the Multi-Cultural Center, the LGBTQ community, and numerous other organizations.
While I applaud the creation of the position, I’m wondering if this was taken into consideration;
Authorities say an off-duty Sioux Falls police officer cited for careless driving in a crash that killed a 17-year-old Badger girl will not face additional charges.
Kingsbury County State’s Attorney Gregg Gass said that the July 22 crash was “simply a matter of inadvertent careless driving.”
Gass said25-year-old Cynthia Holmquest was reaching for a pair of sunglasses in her vehicle when it struck Savannah Koistinen’s vehicle from behind, pushing it into the path of an oncoming school bus carrying students.
At the time of the incident, some questioned whether Holmquest (who was a new officer on the SFPD) should have been able to keep her patrol officer position or her job at all. Obviously it was a tragic accident, but one has to question Holmquest’s driving abilities during emergencies as an officer after the incident (she was off-duty at the time).
I guess I am ignorant how these decisions are made when an officer is charged with a traffic violation. But hey, we kept the city attorney in charge of the SFPD after he was charged with a DUI.