Minneapolis police chief denies he lied about Timberlake hiring
MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O'Hara clarified Sunday what he knew about a controversial officer hire after a leaked email from the officer accused the chief of lying. Tyler Timberlake was hired in January but this past week officials said he was no longer with the department.
Activists had called for Timberlake to be fired over a use-of-force incident at his previous job in Fairfax County, Virginia.
In that 2020 incident, police were attempting to guide a disoriented man into an ambulance destined for a detox facility. Timberlake, as seen in bodycam footage, discharged his taser, pinned him to the ground, and appeared to strike the back of his head. The incident occurred just days after the murder of George Floyd.
Timberlake faced an assault charge for the incident but was found not guilty by a jury.
"As Chief of Police, when an officer is presented to me as ‘highly recommended’ for hire, after multiple layers of review, I have to be able to trust that the officer has been screened and meets my standard for this department," he said.
Minneapolis Police Chief Brian OHara (FOX 9)
This spring, when community activists learned of the hiring, sparking a controversy, Chief O'Hara promised a review of Timberlake's hiring along with the department's hiring process. "I am extremely concerned about what I have just learned pertaining to the hiring of this individual who is currently in agency training and yet to be deployed into service," read a statement the chief made in April.
In emails obtained by FOX 9, sent by Timberlake to Mayor Jacob Frey, Chief O'Hara, and other city officials in May, Timberlake accused the chief of making false statements about his employment with MPD.
"These statements have been harmful to my reputation by, among other things, implying that the chief had no knowledge of my prior work history or my hiring at MPD when, in fact, he was involved in my hiring, or worse suggesting that I was dishonest and less than forthcoming during the hiring process," the email reads. "Chief O'Hara found it easier to defame me than to own the truth which will show that he interviewed me and approved of my hire after a full discourse of events."
The emails also show that Timberlake had informed the department about the use-of-force incident.
The Police Officers Federation of Minneapolis criticized O'Hara in a statement last week, following Timberlake's departure. "It is truly unfortunate Chief O’Hara released Officer Tyler Timberlake from employment from the police department. Chief O’Hara was in the final interview of Timberlake and was fully aware of his history. During his final interview, he was assured by Chief O’Hara he would be okay, if he did good work. This is clearly not the case. The hiring of Timberlake was not an issue until an April 19th news article created a politically charged narrative of his hiring."
In a statement of his own on Sunday, Chief O'Hara acknowledged being part of Timberlake's interview process but clarified that he was not aware of the bodycam video showing the arrest.
The statement reads in part:
"The MPD hiring process involves a background investigation and also screening by a hiring roundtable. Candidates who advance past those steps of the process are eligible for an interview as the last step of the process. On my second day of employment with the MPD, I observed Mr. Timberlake’s interview. He was hired thereafter.
"I did not know of the existence of video capturing a use of force incident involving this individual until after receiving a media inquiry. Upon learning of the existence of video and seeing it myself, I immediately ordered an investigation into MPD’s hiring processes.
"I was hired to become the MPD chief in order to reform the department and restore faith and pride in the MPD patch. To imply that I had known about this video at the time of hire and later lied is false."