New Hennepin County Sheriff Dave Hutchinson hits ground running on first full day

New Hennepin County Sheriff David Hutchinson checked out the Hennepin County Jail with his director of communications Jeremy Zoss. Credit: Richard Tsong-Taatarii, Star Tribune

Wherever he stopped during the day, Dave Hutchinson repeated his campaign promise to be “a sheriff that truly represents all residents.”

A couple of workers patched holes and brushed beige paint Tuesday morning on the walls of Hennepin County Sheriff Dave Hutchinson’s new office. He had already met with deputies and been assigned an e-mail address, and a colorful Post-it note with his name was stuck outside the office door to identify the occupant.

So it was on the sheriff’s first full day in office as he stepped into a position held by Rich Stanek for the last 12 years. And if Hutchinson felt overwhelmed making the leap from Metro Transit police sergeant to head of the largest sheriff’s office in Minnesota, he did a good job hiding it.

Maybe that’s why he decided the first stop of the day would be the North Metro Range in Maple Grove, where he tested for his yearly duty weapon qualification.

View the complete January 8 article by David Chanen on The Star Tribune website here.