New NHPD Officer Now On Duty, One Position Left to Fill

The number of open positions in the New Hampton Police Department (NHPD) was reduced by one over the weekend, leaving one spot left to fill.

Earlier this month, the New Hampton City Council approved Police Chief Conrad Rosendahl’s recommendation to hire Kassidi Havens, a certified police officer who had been employed by the City of Eldora. Rosendahl says Havens started working for the NHPD on Sunday (06.14). 

The hiring of Havens comes on the heels of the departure of two former officers. One by choice; one due to unfortunate circumstances.

Jace Hall left after he was hired as a deputy for the Chickasaw County Sheriff’s Office. He started work for the County on June 2nd, the day after the City Council approved the hiring of Havens.

Last month, the NHPD parted ways with former Officer Cory Frank, who had been unable to return to full active duty since suffering a back injury last summer. Rosendahl says Frank is welcome to reapply with the City down the road, provided he is medically cleared.

Rosendahl says the process for filling the remaining position has been slow and they are still in the testing phase. He’s previously noted that none of the recent candidates under consideration are ILEA certified, which means any hire would need to attend the Police Academy. If that hire is made in time, he or she would head to academy training in August, with graduation by the end of October/early November to make the NHPD again fully staffed.

Rosendahl will mark his second anniversary as New Hampton police chief on July 1st.