Forest Lake swears in new police officers months after nearly losing department

FOREST LAKE, Minn. (KMSP) - After almost losing their police department a few months ago, new officers sworn in tonight in Forest Lake, Minnesota.

The chief said it’s a new chapter for the department and he's looking forward to having more officers on the force.

The three were sworn in just before the city council meeting started, though the three officers have already been patrolling the streets.

One brings more than 20 years of experience from another agency while the other two officers are brand new to law enforcement.

Back in the spring, Forest Lake was about to lose their police force because of major budget concerns.

Plans were already in place to have the local sheriff's office take over, but the community was not on board with that.

There was significant backlash against city leaders including high school students walking out of class in protest.

Officer Josh Brown - who grew up here - said the support for the local department is one of the biggest reasons he chose to be an officer.

“It’s been a dream of mine to work for the city of Forest Lake. I grew up around here and went to high school here, and it’s really a dream come true for me to work here,” he said.

The Forest Lake police department now has 25 full-time officers on the force.