Commissioners give green light to Clay County Sheriff’s cadet program

MOORHEAD, Minn. (KVRR-KFGO) – The Clay County Commission has unanimously approved a cadet program for the Clay County Sheriff’s Office.

Sheriff Mark Empting presented the idea to the commission on Tuesday, Jan. 20. He says cadets must be 18 or older, and are typically college students in law enforcement or criminal justice programs who could be promoted once they graduate.

“They will be able to experience all aspects. I think it will be good for us as far as recruiting in the future to where we are able to see how they operate, how they operate under stress, and we would hopefully be able to have that person go from cadet to deputy,” Empting told commissioners.

The sheriff’s cadet position is a part-time, non-sworn role. Empting says the position provides structured exposure to corrections, court services, patrol, investigations, and community service functions.

Former Moorhead Police Chief David Ebinger is a Clay County Commissioner. He says they had a cadet program for 28 years while he was in the department and it was beneficial.

“It was an excellent tool for recruiting and vetting people, too. You’d have some kids in there that you knew you didn’t want to advance and you had solid reasoning behind it. So this sounds like a great idea to me,” Ebinger said.

Sheriff Empting says cadets will be in uniform, receive basic deputy training and will not carry a weapon. The sheriff’s office is hoping to hire three to four cadets.

No additional funding is needed, as the department is using a current open position to cover the cost of hiring cadets.