[MN] Officer Rinehart's wife walked into council meeting beaten up

..."She had some bleeding from her nose, blood on her shirt and her face was puffy and swollen," said Maplewood Police Chief David Thomalla, who was attending a biweekly City Council meeting when the victim walked into City Hall, where the police department also is located. Rinehart's wife, who complained of rib pain, too, was taken to St. John's Hospital in Maplewood... He said officers have to be careful when dealing with other officers because they are often armed... In 2001, Rinehart was one of three officers disciplined for not reporting the use of force in arresting an 18-year-old Illinois man. And twice during the past two years, his canine partner, Sarik, has bitten the wrong person...



ST. PAUL OFFICER ACCUSED OF DOMESTIC ABUSE
myfoxtwincities.com
23 Jun 2009
[Excerpts] SAINT PAUL, Minn. - A Saint Paul police officer was arrested Monday night in Maplewood for domestic assault. Isaac Rinehart has been placed on administrative duties until an investigation is completed. Rinehart works with Saint Paul's canine unit. The Maplewood police chief says Rinehart's showed up to a city council meeting with a bloody nose and swollen face, asking for help. She told police her husband had beat her up... [Full article here]



ST. PAUL POLICE OFFICER IS ACCUSED OF ASSAULT IN MAPLEWOOD
Wife of a member of K-9 force says he hit her in face
Pioneer Press
By Mara H. Gottfried mgottfried@pioneerpress.com
Updated: 06/23/2009 11:43:41 PM CDT
[Excerpts] Isaac Rinehart was arrested Tuesday at the Maplewood Police Department. A woman walked into the Maplewood Police Department on Monday night, reported that her husband had assaulted her and said he was a St. Paul police officer. She had visible injuries to her face, Maplewood police Chief Dave Thomalla said Tuesday. About 90 minutes later, officer Isaac Rinehart came to the police department and was arrested. Maplewood police cited him for misdemeanor domestic assault, and he was booked into the Ramsey County jail. The woman, whom Thomalla didn't name, told police she and Rinehart had been arguing, Thomalla said... St. Paul police have relieved Rinehart, a K-9 officer, of his regular assignment and placed him in an administrative position pending the outcome of the case, said Sgt. Paul Schnell, police spokesman. He's also the subject of an internal affairs investigation after his K-9 partner bit a 13-year-old boy when Rinehart was off duty in March... Rinehart's wife walked about three-quarters of a mile to the Maplewood police station... Paramedics took the woman to St. John's Hospital, where she was evaluated and released... A judge denied Rinehart's request for a public defender, ordered Rinehart not to have contact with the victim and set bail at $1,000, which Rinehart posted. He was released pending a July 27 court appearance... In December 2007, [Officer Rinehart's K9] Sarik slipped from Rinehart's grasp while he was responding to a fight call in downtown St. Paul and bit a man who wasn't involved... [Full article here]

ST. PAUL OFFICER ACCUSED OF BEATING HIS WIFE
ST. PAUL (WCCO)
Heather Brown
Jun 23, 2009
[Excerpts] A St. Paul police officer is on desk duty after accusations he beat his wife. Officer Isaac Rinehart was arrested Monday night after turning himself in at the Maplewood Police Department. Around 10 p.m., his wife walked into the Maplewood Police Department. Maplewood Chief Dave Thomalla saw her and noticed something was wrong. "She had facial injuries. She had some bleeding from the nose and some swelling in her face," he said. "Obviously, she'd been assaulted." She told him she'd been hurt by her husband at the home where he was staying. She said they'd been in a fight and she'd walked a mile to the police station. Maplewood officers took her to the hospital. While she was being checked out, Thomalla called St. Paul Police Chief John Harrington to tell him what happened. Harrington called Rinehart's commander, who then called Rinehart. Within the hour, Rinehart had turned himself in. Thomalla said while all domestic cases are different, his officers did not handle this one differently because Rinehart is a police officer. He said officers have to be careful when dealing with other officers because they are often armed... Thomalla said Rinehart didn't give police a statement and requested his lawyer. In his 15 years with St. Paul Police, Rinehart's personnel file shows he's been commended 16 times. He's also been reprimanded four times. One was a 4-day suspension in 1996 for conduct unbecoming of a police officer. Privacy rules prevent police from releasing any more details on that suspension. Rinehart is also under investigation after his police canine bit a child earlier this year... Once the criminal case is closed, St. Paul Police will begin their own investigation... [Full article here]

A COURT DATE WAS SET FOR THE ST. PAUL OFFICER, WHOSE WIFE WENT TO MAPLEWOOD CITY HALL TO REPORT SHE HAD BEEN BEATEN.
Minneapolis Star Tribune
By Anthony Lonetree
Last update: June 24, 2009 - 9:09 PM
[Excerpts] A July 27 court hearing has been set for a St. Paul police canine officer charged with misdemeanor domestic assault. Isaac D. Rinehart, 42, was arraigned in Ramsey County District Court Tuesday after his wife went to Maplewood City Hall about 10 p.m. Monday claiming he had beaten her. "She had some bleeding from her nose, blood on her shirt and her face was puffy and swollen," said Maplewood Police Chief David Thomalla, who was attending a biweekly City Council meeting when the victim walked into City Hall, where the police department also is located. Rinehart's wife, who complained of rib pain, too, was taken to St. John's Hospital in Maplewood, where she was treated and released... Last fall, Rinehart was among several St. Paul K-9 cops to be featured on an Animal Planet TV series. But he has been the subject of less flattering news coverage, as well. In 2001, Rinehart was one of three officers disciplined for not reporting the use of force in arresting an 18-year-old Illinois man. And twice during the past two years, his canine partner, Sarik, has bitten the wrong person... Asked why the officer faced a misdemeanor charge, as opposed to a felony, the chief said "the injuries appeared to reach the misdemeanor level." He added, however, that his department also has requested the victim's medical records for review, and if the injuries were more severe than initially believed, the case could be sent to the county attorney's office for consideration of felony charges [Full article here]

FROM LAST MARCH:

ST. PAUL POLICE K9 POLICIES UNDER REVIEW AFTER ATTACK
KSTP.com
By: Nicole Muehlhausen
03/19/2009
[Excerpts] The St. Paul Police Department's K9 polices will go under review after a teenager was attacked by one of it's dogs Sunday night. Thirteen-year-old Mitch Fitzgerald told 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS he still hurts after being attacked by an unleashed police K9 named Sarik. The boy had to have 13 stitches in his arm and five in his lip after the assault. "I thought I felt his teeth hit the bone and he kept gnawing, gnawing and gnawing," Fitzgerald said. His mother, Terri, says she's even angrier after 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS discovered this isn't the first incident. In December of 2007, Sarik also bit a man while waiting for the bus... St. Paul Police spokesman Pete Panos says after the first incident, there was no formal investigation and both Sarik and his handler Officer Isaac Rinehart are still on the job. "This is very regrettable. It's a very bad accident and we take it very serious," Panos said. After spending two nights in the hospital, Fitzgerald says he still loves dogs but worries someone else may end up like him. "If it struck two people, it's going to strike three people probably. [The dog] should always be on a leash especially if it's in a neighborhood," he said... [Full article here]

FROM LAST APRIL:

SOUTH ST. PAUL / ST. PAUL OFFICER NOT CITED IN DOG BITE
Pioneer Press
By Mara H. Gottfried mgottfried@pioneerpress.com
Posted:04/08/2009 10:08 PM
[Excerpts] South St. Paul police closed their investigation Wednesday into a St. Paul police dog that bit a 13-year-old boy. They did not issue a citation to the officer. Police treated the case as they would handle any dog bite, said Lt. William Messerich... Mitch Fitzgerald got three stitches on his lip and 13 on his arm after off-duty officer Isaac Rinehart's K-9 partner, Sarik, bit him about 9 p.m. March 15... Rinehart was in uniform and driving a marked squad car when he stopped by to let Sarik out. "Before doing so, Officer Rinehart checked the area visually with the squad's spotlight and verbally by announcing, 'anybody out there'... Seeing no one and hearing no one, Sarik was released from the vehicle." Rinehart heard a scream "within a short period of time" and called Sarik back "as he ran towards the scream"... [Mitch's mother Terri] Fitzgerald said she hadn't heard from South St. Paul police that the investigation was over... [Full article here]
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