HomeMy WebLinkAboutApril 3 - New PD Officers
City of Edina • 4801 W. 50th St. • Edina, MN 55424
Contact: Krystal Caron, Communications Coordinator
Phone 952-826-0347 • kcaron@EdinaMN.gov • www.EdinaMN.gov
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
City of Edina Police Department Hires New Officers
Edina, Minn., April 3, 2014 – Ryan Pankratz and Richard Harr were recently hired as the Edina Police
Department’s newest officers.
Pankratz began work as a Police Officer April 2 and Harr began work on April 3. The oath will be
administered to both on April 8 in the Council Chambers of Edina City Hall. Pankratz’s wife, Molly, will pin on
his badge, No. 116. Harr plans on having his mother, Diane, pin on his badge, No. 118.
Pankratz holds a bachelor’s degree in law enforcement from Metropolitan State University. He has since
worked as a Community Service Officer (CSO) for Owatonna, Special Deputy for Steel County Sheriff’s
Office and most recently as a Police Officer for the City of Robbinsdale.
Getting into law enforcement was something that has been a long time coming for Pankratz. “It was
something I always had an interest in, but I didn’t pursue it [right away]. I went to college for automotive
technology and was a mechanic for a couple years. … I decided to go back to school for law enforcement
because it was something I always had an interest in,” said Pankratz.
Harr graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice from the University of St. Thomas and has been
serving as a CSO with the City of Edina since 2012.
For Harr, being an Edina Police Officer is in his blood. His father, J. Scott Harr, served as an Edina Police
Officer as well.
“My dad started in Edina as a Police Officer, so I had always planned on being a Police Officer. I was in the
Edina Explorers program and then a CSO,” said Harr.
The Explorers program provides educational training for young adults on the purposes, mission and objectives
of law enforcement. Through his time in the program, Harr got to know the City and its employees
personally.
He explained, “You build inner-department and inner-City [relationships], as well as in the community. It’s a
small enough city that you can get to know some citizens well, but it’s still big enough that there are the
opportunities that smaller cities can’t offer.”
For more information, contact the Edina Police Department at 952-826-1610.
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