Brian O’Hara’s Rise and Resignation as Minneapolis Chief

Brian O’Hara’s resignation as Minneapolis police chief on May 26, 2026 followed an outside investigation that found he had “knowingly and intentionally” interfered with a misconduct probe into his own conduct. He stepped down the same day Mayor Jacob Frey told him he intended to pursue discipline “up to and including discharge.”¹ O’Hara, the 54th chief of the Minneapolis Police Department, had led the force since November 2022.

What Investigators Found

The city hired the outside law firm Forsgren Fisher McCalmont DeMarea Tysver to look into complaints that O’Hara had engaged in intimate relationships with city employees. The firm’s updated report, released on May 26, 2026, concluded there was insufficient evidence he had a sexually intimate relationship with any city employee. The report ended his tenure on different grounds.

Investigators found that O’Hara had interfered with the probe in two specific ways. He deleted a contact card for a material witness from his city-issued phone “in an attempt to shield evidence,” and he discussed the investigation with a city employee after being explicitly instructed to keep it confidential.² The firm also determined that O’Hara had been untruthful during his April 17, 2026 interview about text messages he had sent to a young recruit.³

How the Investigation Began

On May 1, 2025, Frey and Community Safety Commissioner Todd Barnette met with O’Hara about complaints regarding his relationships with city employees. Barnette has said O’Hara became agitated when instructed to surrender his city-issued phone for forensic imaging.⁴

The law firm’s initial report, completed in mid-July 2025, found insufficient evidence to substantiate the allegations. That looked like the end of it. It wasn’t.

The Whistleblower Recording

In December 2025, a department whistleblower gave investigators an audio recording dated June 13, 2025. On it, O’Hara’s longtime driver, Officer Abdisamad Ahmed, could be heard discussing efforts to “straighten out the story” of a recruit who had allegedly been involved with the chief. The recording prompted the firm to reopen the investigation.⁵

The whistleblower’s account went further. A draft 32-page lawsuit prepared by attorney Chris Madel and sent to city attorneys on April 22, 2026 alleged that the whistleblower had faced retaliation, a hostile work environment, and a “forcible transfer” while on parental leave as punishment for cooperating with investigators. The draft also accused Ahmed of repairing a crashed city vehicle “off the books” after a purported drunken driving incident involving O’Hara, and of “double-dipping” by working off-duty while being paid city overtime, with O’Hara allegedly hiding Ahmed’s schedule in the department’s time management system.³ The lawsuit has not been filed in court, and the whistleblower’s identity has not been publicly disclosed.⁶

The Renomination That Fell Apart

On May 7, 2026, two weeks after city attorneys received the draft lawsuit, Frey publicly renominated O’Hara for a second term. Several council members had already expressed reservations, citing more than a dozen open complaints against the chief and a department that had exceeded its 2025 budget by more than $19 million in overtime costs.⁷ A confirmation hearing was tentatively set for June 9. The council never voted.

On May 26, Frey informed O’Hara of the report’s findings and told him he intended to initiate discipline that could include termination. O’Hara resigned immediately. Frey also issued a written reprimand stating that O’Hara’s conduct “demonstrates poor judgment, is inconsistent with the level of integrity this role requires, and has made it extraordinarily difficult for you to continue effectively in your role.”¹

At a press conference the next day, Frey said: “Trust is not secondary to the job. It is the job.” He acknowledged that the information that led to the resignation had not been fully available when he renominated O’Hara. “If I had known earlier, I would not have renominated him,” he said.⁴

O’Hara’s Response

Through his attorney, O’Hara released a statement on May 27, 2026 that did not address the specific findings of interference. It focused instead on his tenure, pointing to reductions in violent crime, growth in the size of the department, progress in rebuilding community trust, and his management of the federal immigration surge in Minneapolis. The statement said the “circumstances should not define his service” and that O’Hara was “proud to serve Minneapolis.”⁸

What’s Still Unresolved

At the time of his departure, O’Hara was the subject of 17 additional open personnel complaints. The city has not described their nature and has said the investigations will continue.²

Officer Abdisamad Ahmed, the driver heard on the June 2025 recording, was relieved of duty and placed on paid leave on May 29, 2026. He had not been disciplined earlier despite being questioned by investigators months before. Ahmed, who joined the department via lateral transfer in 2021, has been the subject of at least 18 complaints, seven of which remained open as of June 2026.⁹

Who Is Leading MPD Now

Frey named Assistant Chief Katie Blackwell as acting chief effective May 26. Blackwell, a Minneapolis native and 24-year MPD veteran who served as a prosecution expert in the Derek Chauvin trials, led the department for about a week. On June 2, 2026, Bill Peterson, a 30-year department veteran who heads the First Precinct, was named interim chief. Peterson has said he is not interested in the permanent job.¹⁰

Barnette has said the search for a permanent chief could take six months and has encouraged internal candidates to apply.¹⁰ His own position is unsettled. The City Council has twice rejected his reappointment, and Frey has used vetoes to keep him in place. Under the city charter, Frey must appoint someone to lead the Office of Community Safety on an interim basis after August 2, 2026, and the city attorney’s office has indicated the interim appointee could be Barnette himself.¹¹

What O’Hara Is Doing Now

Within weeks of leaving the department, O’Hara launched the O’Hara Leadership Group, a consulting and advisory firm. Its website describes work with organizations on crisis leadership, organizational transformation, and workforce development. O’Hara also offers keynote speaking, with recent engagements listed at the Public Safety Summit at Harvard, the FBI National Academy Associates, and the International Association of Chiefs of Police.¹²

Context: The Tenure Behind the Fall

O’Hara had been brought to Minneapolis to rebuild a police department that lost roughly 500 sworn officers after George Floyd’s murder. A 20-year veteran of the Newark, New Jersey force, he was 43 when the Minneapolis City Council confirmed him unanimously and he was sworn in on November 7, 2022.¹³ He often described the force he inherited as “depleted and demoralized.”¹⁴

By September 2025, the department had climbed back to about 600 sworn officers, and O’Hara projected roughly 100 more within the following year.¹⁵ Frey has credited him with boosting department ranks and with efforts to restore community trust.⁵

A June 2026 progress report from the independent evaluator Effective Law Enforcement For All, tracking the state consent decree the department operates under, praised training on use-of-force policies and officer wellness initiatives while flagging delays in implementing intervention policies and a backlog of unresolved internal affairs investigations.¹⁶

1
New York Times. Minneapolis Police Chief Resigns
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CNN. Minneapolis Police Chief Resigns
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Star Tribune. Document Details Numerous Whistleblower Allegations Against Chief O’Hara and Top Staff
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KSTP. City Council Members: Brian O’Hara Out as Minneapolis Police Chief
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Star Tribune. Investigations and New Evidence: What Led to Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara’s Downfall
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Audacy / WCCO Radio. Whistleblower Retaliation MPD Chief
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Star Tribune. Mayor Jacob Frey Nominate Police Chief O’Hara
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CBS News Minnesota. Minneapolis Police Chief O’Hara Resignation Statement
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Star Tribune. Ex-Chief Brian O’Hara’s Driver Placed on Leave From Police Duties Amid Misconduct Investigation
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CBS News Minnesota. Bill Peterson Interim Minneapolis Police Chief
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Axios Twin Cities. Minneapolis Todd Barnette Police Reform Alternative Office
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KSTP. Brian O’Hara Launches Consulting Firm After MPD Resignation
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CBS News Minnesota. Minneapolis Mayor Frey Announcement on Police Chief Brian O’Hara
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PBS NewsHour. New Minneapolis Police Chief on Changing the Department After George Floyd’s Murder
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Police Executive Research Forum. Trending – September 2025
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CBS News Minnesota. Minneapolis Police Department Consent Decree Reform Report