Arrest Made in Shooting Death of Former Lake Park Police Chief

Morris Dodd Jr. faces 2nd degree manslaughter and felon in possession of a firearm charges

BECKER COUNTY, Minn. – A rural Ogema man has been arrested in the death of former Lake Park Police Chief and Becker County Deputy Jay Nelson.

The 53-year-old was out hunting on November 10th when he was shot while driving on the Yellowhead Trail in West Sugarbush Township.

54-year-old Morris Dodd Jr. faces 2nd degree manslaughter and felon in possession of a firearm charges. He was convicted of 2nd degree criminal sexual misconduct in 1994 and violating a sex offender registry law in 2002.

“Surreal is a real way to describe it. It’s one thing to be working in the shadow of a former chief who was well respected in Lake Park. But now that he’s gone, it really changes the dynamic of work I’m doing in Lake Park trying to live up to his true legacy,” Lake Park Police Chief Brady Burnside said in an interview on November 12th.

Becker County Sheriff Todd Glander says he doesn’t believe there are any signs of foul play.