Richard W. Stanek

In 1989, Stanek allegedly shouted racial epithets and assaulted an African American driver at the scene of a traffic accident in which he was involved. The case was ultimately settled out of court.[3]

In 2007 Mayor R.T. Rybak and Minneapolis police chief Tim Dolan criticized Stanek for providing false information in the 26-minute video on the collapse of the I-35W Mississippi River bridge and for taking credit for actions that weren't his responsibility.[8] The $30,000 film was funded with forfeited money earmarked for training. "His theft of the credit is not going to sit well with my staff and our hard working partners," Minneapolis police chief Tim Dolan said in an e-mail. The St. Cloud company that produced the video was the same company that handled advertising and marketing for Stanek's campaign in 2006.[9]

Rich Stanek in 2014

Melissa Hill, who ran a campaign against Stanek under the slogan "Kitten for Sheriff"[10] was awarded $15,000 in a federal civil rights settlement against Hennepin County.[11][12] Hennepin County paid $15,000 to Melissa Hill for allegedly trespassing at Occupy Minneapolis. Hill's attorney Jordan Kushner said that "She was arrested and put in jail for no reason but for retaliation by the sheriff for being a political activist" and that Hill saw Stanek watching her from his SUV before she was arrested. He argued that both her original trespass order and arrest were unconstitutional. Hill was a legal observer for the National Lawyers Guild at that time of the arrest. "I feel I was vindicated," said Hill. "I was arrested on a public sidewalk. This sends a strong message that they can't be misusing their trespass policy to suppress free speech."[11]

In 2010 after his re-election Stanek was involved in a conflict with the County Board of Commissioners over his budget. The conflict, arising as the budget season kicked in, highlighted the divisions among powerful elected officials who have different views of the county's priorities at a time when budgets are being frozen and services cut. Stanek "advocates for a larger role for the Hennepin County sheriff, and he wants to be held harmless from any budget cuts," Board Chair Mike Opat said. "But public safety is done by a lot of people, not only the sheriff. The sheriff is not the generalissimo of Hennepin County."[13]

In October 2016, Stanek sent Hennepin County deputies and equipment to North Dakota to assist law enforcement efforts there to suppress the Dakota Access Pipeline protests.[14] The personnel sharing, under the auspices of the Emergency Management Assistance Compact, sparked protests and was met with criticism from Minneapolis City Council member Alondra Cano, state Senator Patricia Torres Ray, state Representative Peggy Flanagan, and Clyde Bellecourt.[15]

His son, Ryan Stanek (commonly referred to as "Ry-Ry-Ram-boy"), has been charged with numerous criminal violations, including two driving while intoxicated (DWI) charges: One in 2015[16] and one in 2017.[17] He has also been twice charged with possession of marijuana, in 2012, and in 2016 after his truck was searched following his rear-ending and severely damaging a fire truck. In 2014, Stanek was charged with felony property damage after he went "mudding" in a public park, damaging a horse trail.[18] His son was also charged for soliciting a 13-year-old minor for sex, and possessing child pornography.[19]