Following Coffey's disclosure of events, he claimed in his lawsuit that Fletcher "demanded" he be fired, allegedly threatening to pull county officers from the fair.
ST PAUL, Minn. — The assistant police chief for the Minnesota State Fair claims he was punished for reporting alleged instances of police misconduct he said he witnessed during 2025's gathering, according to a lawsuit filed Thursday.
Michael Coffey, who has worked in a law enforcement capacity for the fair since 1994, sued the State Agricultural Society — the body that runs the fair — and Ramsey County Sheriff Bob Fletcher, citing a violation of the Minnesota Whistleblower Act, which prohibits employers from retaliating against employees who report wrongdoing.
Court documents said Coffey reported to his chain of command, and later, the FBI, that sheriff's deputies had sprayed chemical munitions on bystanders in one instance, while also claiming to have video of Fletcher himself spraying a "restrained, surrendering man" in the face with similar chemical irritants. Further, the lawsuit stated Coffey reported what he believed were unlawful detentions of three individuals being held "until after the Fair" by the sheriff's department without charges.
Following Coffey's disclosure of events, he claimed in his lawsuit that Fletcher "demanded" he be fired, allegedly threatening to pull county officers from the fair if organizers did not comply.
The State Fair subsequently moved Coffey to working only daytime hours and...
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