Vadnais Heights Mayor contends sheriff not resident of Ramsey county when appointed
Vadnais Heights Mayor Bob Fletcher (left) and Ramsey County Sheriff Jack Serier (right)
ST. PAUL, Minn. (KMSP) - Vadnais Heights Mayor Bob Fletcher says he has proof that Ramsey County Sheriff Jack Serier was ineligible to serve at the time of his appointment to the position, raising the possibility that he will seek criminal charges against the first-year public safety official.
Minnesota law requires a Sheriff to live in the county he or she serves, something Fletcher says was not the case for Serier when he was appointed to the position earlier this year.
At the time of his appointment, Serier claims he was renting a home from former Sheriff Matt Bostrom--a home he officially purchased in August.
At issue is a utility bill addressed to Serier at the St. Paul address dated Jan. 10--the exact day he was officially appointed to be sheriff--that he used to officially establish residency. Fletcher, however, submitted an email chain to the Ramsey County Board Wednesday in which Bostrom tells the homeowner's association manager on Jan. 13 that the house in question is vacant.
It's a revelation Fletcher--a former Ramsey County sheriff himself--calls "troubling."
"This letter provides prima facie evidence that Jack Serier did not live at 582 Payne at the time of his appointment on January 10, 2017," Fletcher said in his email to Ramsey County Commissioners. "Any claims of residency at this address by Serier are obviously false statements from him."
In earlier statements Serier contends that he moved into the residence on a full-time basis in December, and was fully vetted by the county board prior to his January appointment.
Fletcher says he'll decide on his next steps sometime after the new year.