Historical precedent was key in setting the 2011 Freeborn County sheriff’s salary, according to testimony given by Freeborn County commissioners on Thursday afternoon.

“We gave Kindler closer to the outgoing sheriff’s salary than Harig received when Nolander left,” said Freeborn County Commissioner Dan Belshan during his testimony.

“It’s logical that if the county is paying an employee a certain wage, they should be able to get that,” Freeborn County Sheriff Bob Kindler said after the hearing.

Kindler appealed his $75,000 salary for 2011, which county commissioners set in December, a month and a half after he had been elected. That pay rate represents a 9.25 percent reduction from Kindler’s base salary for 2010, when he was the detective supervisor in the Sheriff’s Office and an overall salary reduction of more than 15 percent when overtime is added.

The appeal lasted about 2 1/2 hours in Freeborn County District Court. Kindler, representing himself, called Freeborn County Commissioners Christopher Shoff, Glen Mathiason, and Belshan to the stand for questioning.

When he asked Shoff if Kindler’s salary had been set lower than his salary as supervisor detective because Freeborn County faces a financial hardship, Shoff said no.

Shoff said the criteria used in setting his salary was based largely on historical precedent.

In January 2002, before the sheriff’s race between Don Nolander and Mark Harig took place, a minimum salary of $59,000 was set. The minimum salary is required by law and lets all candidates know in advance of the starting salary of that position. When Nolander left the office of sheriff at the end of 2002, he was making $72,064. When Harig took that same office in January 2003, his starting salary was set at $65,500 — a 9.1 percent reduction from Nolander’s salary, but 11 percent higher than the minimum salary.

In January 2010, county commissioners set a minimum salary of $62,000 for the sheriff’s office. If they would’ve set Kindler’s salary at 11 percent higher than the minimum, his new salary would have been set at $68,820.

As a detective supervisor, Kindler was an hourly employee, making $39.39 per hour with a yearly base wage before overtime of $81,931. Had he stayed in that position, his 2011 rate of pay would have been $40.17 per hour, or $83,570 for the year before overtime.

Harig made $82,500 in 2010, which is 9.25 percent more than the $75,000 Kindler was given in his first year.

Even though Kindler had more than 23 years in the department of Freeborn County Sheriff’s Office, he was considered new in the role of sheriff.

“When a position opens up, you don’t fill it with someone at the top level of pay. You grow into it,” Shoff said.

When asked if Harig would have received a pay raise for 2011 had he remained in office, Belshan reminded the court that he had voted to freeze the salaries of all elected officials. He said that when Harig submitted his salary requests, he would often point out that with overtime, the detective supervisor pay exceeded his.

According to Scott Lepak, the county’s lawyer, the county board was required to look at the duties and responsibilities of the Sheriff’s Office, along with his experience and qualifications. Mathiason said Kindler’s education was also taken into account.

Kindler asked Mathiason if his job performance as a detective supervisor was taken into account.

“I don’t know if that’s relevant,” Mathiason said. “This was a different position. There was certainly nothing negative from your previous job. That wasn’t a factor.”

Commissioner Jim Nelson had also been summoned by the court, but after it was agreed by Kindler and Lepak that the testimony given by the other three commissioners, both individually and as a whole, would likely not differ, the judge dismissed him from taking the stand.

Lepak called Freeborn County Administrator John Kluever to the stand, to share how information gathered about elected officials from surrounding counties was used when setting salaries for elected officials in Freeborn County. Kluever said the 2010 salaries of elected officials in District 9 of the Association of Minnesota Counties were taken into account when setting not only the sheriff’s salary, but also that of county commissioners, recorder, auditor/treasurer and attorney.

In addition, salaries of elected county officials from around the state, in counties with 10 percent more or fewer people than Freeborn County, were examined.

After the hearing was closed, Kindler said he was trying to establish the facts of exactly what things were taken into account when the commissioners set his salary. Because he did not take the stand, he was hoping to establish these facts through his line of questioning.

Kindler would not reveal what he thought his salary should have been set at for 2011. He said if his appeal is denied, he will continue to work hard as sheriff for the people of Freeborn County.

Commissioners also released a statement after the hearing, stating the board will continue its best efforts to establish and maintain a good working relationship with the sheriff.

The case was heard by Mower County District Court Judge Donald Rysavy in Freeborn County, after Freeborn County District Court Judges Steven Schwab and John Chesterman formally recused themselves from the case.

Rysavy asked for written closing arguments from both sides by next Friday.

Lepak said a “rough guess” when he would expect to hear a ruling would be April.