Saint Paul,MN : Off-duty Minn. police officer charged with DUI after six cars damaged in crash on November, Monday 20th 2017

A state trooper responded to the scene of a crash last week in St. Paul to find six damaged cars and one drunken driving suspect an off-duty St. Paul police officer, according to a criminal complaint filed in Ramsey County District Court.

Cory James Kochendorfer, 38, of Woodbury, had a 0.24 blood-alcohol concentration 2 hours and 23 minutes after the crash, the complaint said. He was charged with two counts of third-degree driving while under the influence of alcohol. The legal limit in Minnesota is 0.08.


On Nov. 13, Kochendorfer struck a red car with his black pickup truck, damaging both vehicles extensively, according to the complaint. Four other parked cars were damaged as well.

The state trooper arrived to find Kochendorfer still sitting in the driver's seat of the truck.

The trooper noticed "the faint odor of an alcoholic beverage and other signs of intoxication about the driver," the complaint said. Kochendorfer admitted to drinking one beer.

After failing the standard field sobriety tests, Kochendorfer admitted to drinking five beers, according to the complaint. He was taken to police headquarters, where he took a breath test.

Kochendorfer has been a St. Paul police officer since 2005 and remains assigned to the department's narcotics unit.

"We hold our officers to the highest personal and professional standards — both on duty and off — and I am disappointed one of our officers has put himself in a position to be charged with a crime," Police Chief Todd Axtell said in a statement on Monday. "As we have always done in these situations, we will follow the case closely and take appropriate action."

Kochendorfer was disciplined once as a St. Paul police officer — he received a verbal reprimand 10 years ago after a woman reported she felt he was "rude, impatient and unprofessional" when he responded to assist her, according to a letter in Kochendorfer's personnel file.

Kochendorfer also works as a real estate agent, and he attended University of Minnesota and St. Cloud State University, according to his LinkedIn profile.

Attempts to reach Kochendorfer's attorney by phone were unsuccessful.

Kochendorfer has no prior charges of driving while under the influence. His next court hearing will be Dec. 18.

Source :
Off-duty Minn. police officer charged with DUI after six cars damaged in crash