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RESOLUTION 82-17 A RESOLUTION EXPRESSING CITY COUNCIL SUPPORT FOR 41 ADMINISTRATIVE AND ENFORCEMENT ACTIONS TAKEN BY CITY OFFICIALS WHEREAS, Certain City officials and staff are required to make and enforce decisions regarding interpretations or applications of state and local laws and to generally protect the public health, safety and welfare; and, WHEREAS, The City's appointed officials and staff strive to make decisions and take actions which are beneficial to the community as a whole and which always consider the best interests of the community; and, WHEREAS, While the City officials and staff strive to make reasonable decisions benefiting the entire community, there is very often not any time to ponder a situation and to consult other outside sources of information prior to making a decision; and, WHEREAS, Police Department actions in particular, are more often than not decisions which need to be made immediately without a great deal of time for consultation or review of the situation and also, typically under a certain amount of pressure; and, WHEREAS, When City officials and staff make decisions that are reasonable and prudent and intended to benefit the entire community and in the best interests of the community, and said decisions are subjected to • judicial review and scrutiny after the fact, such as in the Axelson vs. the City of Elk River Lawsuit in which a City decision was overruled and damages and fines imposed based upon said decision, such judicial review may lead to hesitancy on the part of City officials and staff in the proper performance and functioning of their jobs. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the City Council of the City of Elk River that in cases where City officials and employees, and in particular Police Department officers, are required to make decisions and take actions within the scope of their employment or official duties regarding the interpretation or application of laws which affect the public health, safety and welfare of the citizens of Elk River, and where said decisions or actions are not due to malfeasance in office or willful or wanton neglect of duty, the City Council will support the decision or action of the appropriate City official or employee and defend said action or decision and the employee officer's right to make such decision in the judicial system. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED by the City Council of the City of Elk River that in the event the City is unsuccessful in the defense of an officer or employee undertaken pursuant to this resolution, that the City will indemnify the employee or officer against any judgment or amount paid in settlement as provided by and subject to the limitations set forth in Minnesota Statutes Chapter 466. Passed and adopted this day of , 1982. ATTEST: Roger Hinkle, Mayor Robert C. Middaugh, City Administrator