Viral Video Shows Conservative Mayor Being Arrested After Criticizing Cops

Mayor Fred Heidmann of Nisswa, Minnesota was taken into custody Saturday after interfering with police officers conducting a traffic stop. Video of Heidmann's expletive-filled interaction with officers and subsequent arrest was shared on social media.

Heidmann was cited for disorderly conduct and obstructing the legal process for his actions. In June, members of the Nisswa City Council disavowed comments made by Heidmann on Facebook which appeared to defend racially provocative remarks made by a local school teacher. Heidmann was shown on video approaching the traffic stop on foot. Officers were in the process of searching the car.

The below video includes language some may find objectionable.

"You guys are emptying his f*cking car out on the road," Heidmann said. "What the hell are you guys up to? Don't you have something better to do, like patrol the goddamn streets?"

Heidmann was warned by an officer that being present at the scene "isn't safe."

"You know what?" Heidmann asked. "I'm the mayor of this f*cking town and you guys get the hell off our highway out here."

"You'd think up in this area we'd have some decent f*cking cops," Heidmann added. "You're as bad as the f*cking dinks down in Minneapolis."

Nisswa Police Department Chief Craig Taylor said in a statement, "I am disappointed and extremely sad that an elected official feels justified in inserting himself into a traffic stop that has nothing to do with him and feels it is appropriate to yell and swear at two officers from two jurisdictions that are doing nothing more than trying to do their jobs and making people feel safe."

In a statement sent to Newsweek on Tuesday by the City of Nisswa, Mayor Heidmann said he was immediately told to leave the scene by Pequot Lakes officer Matthew Jorgens. "After trying to get information and getting no response except to leave he did," the statement read.

Heidmann said he invited the passengers of the vehicle to meet him after the traffic stop in order to "learn more about what had transpired." Soon after, "Jorgens grabbed him, twisted his arm and told him he was under arrest."

Mayor Heidmann said that he would fight any legal charges against him on the grounds of free speech. Heidmann also said that he was concerned about "what impression this was making with the hundreds of vacationing families going by seeing what appeared to be tourists having their goods rifled through."

The traffic stop was allegedly performed as part of Toward Zero Deaths, a law enforcement program that describes itself on its website as being geared toward "reducing traffic crashes, injuries and deaths on Minnesota roads."

After teacher Kara Hall posted on Facebook in June about the nationwide protests over the death of George Floyd, Heidmann came to her defense.

Hall resigned after saying the protests were being perpetrated by "creepy, destructive, violent Blacks" who "need to be put in jail."

Heidmann responded to Hall's posts by saying that what happened to Floyd was "inexcusable."

"But when one side can say anything they want and get praised for it and the opposite side is chastised for everything they say," Heidmann continued, "then that becomes communism."

In a June statement, Nisswa's City Council said it neither condoned nor supported Mayor Heidmann's comments.

"We find the comments insulting and unacceptable and they do not, in any way represent the thoughts and feelings of the City Council or the City of Nisswa," the statement read.

In November 2018, Nisswa was voted Best Small Town in Minnesota in a poll conducted by a Minnesota television station.

Updated 6:20 p.m. EST 09/01/2020: This story has been updated with a statement from the City of Nisswa.

Uncommon Knowledge

Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.

Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.

");jQuery(this).remove()}) jQuery('.start-slider').owlCarousel({loop:!1,margin:10,nav:!0,items:1}).on('changed.owl.carousel',function(event){var currentItem=event.item.index;var totalItems=event.item.count;if(currentItem===0){jQuery('.owl-prev').addClass('disabled')}else{jQuery('.owl-prev').removeClass('disabled')} if(currentItem===totalItems-1){jQuery('.owl-next').addClass('disabled')}else{jQuery('.owl-next').removeClass('disabled')}})}})})

ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7r7HWrK6enZtjsLC5jq%2Bgq5mcYsOqsMSoZKygn6zAbq%2FOp6qeqqaWwarCxGakmrGfp3qjscinnmaZoqeytMDEnWSanqSav26v0aKropuZr7avs4ycpqmrXWaCc4WPbG0%3D