Community programs
Get involved with the sheriff’s office in a variety of positive ways.
Request stickers for special needs residents
We offer free stickers for your front door so first responders know someone with a disability lives there.
You can request 4 types of stickers for an occupant who may:
- Be autistic or have special needs
- Be deaf or hearing impaired
- Have dementia or Alzheimer's
- Be a person with a disability
Request sheriff's staff at your event
Sheriff’s staff meet with many diverse communities at businesses, schools, and community and cultural events.
Our staff includes community liaisons who can speak with residents in their preferred language.
Our staff can:
- Add context to community conversations
- Talk about law enforcement topics, including those that are culturally specific
- Give information about working at the sheriff’s office
- Collaborate on solutions to community safety issues
- Do demonstrations with canine (K9) officers, vehicles and specialized equipment
You can invite a staff member to a community event or meeting.
To request sheriff’s staff attend your event or meet with your community, send an email.
Cold weather donation drive
The Hennepin County Sheriff's Office conducts an annual donation drive to collect cold weather items for those in need, including homeless and unsheltered individuals in Hennepin County.
Donated items will be distributed through various means, including through the HCSO Community Engagement Team and directly to individuals visiting the homeless outreach center at the Minneapolis Central Library, 300 Nicollet Mall, Minneapolis, MN 55401. Cold weather items may also be provided to individuals leaving jail or court hearings without adequate clothing, or anyone in else in need that HCSO or Hennepin County Library employees encounter in the course of their duties.
Items being requested include new or gently used coats, hats, mittens, boots, and scarves; new socks, and disposable hand/foot warmers. HCSO requests that individuals do not donate used items that require extensive cleaning or repair.
The 2024/2025 donation drive is now closed, however large donations are still accepted. Donation sites are below.
HCSO Locations
- Sheriff's Administration: 350 S 5th St, Room 6, Minneapolis, MN 55415 (8 a.m. – 4 p.m.)
- Sheriff's Public Safety Facility: 401 S 4th Ave, Minneapolis, MN 55415 (24 hours)
- Sheriff's Water Patrol: 4141 Shoreline Dr, Spring Park, MN 55384 (8 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.)
- Sheriff's Emergency Communications Facility: 1245 Shenandoah Lane N, Plymouth, MN 55447 (8 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.)
- Sheriff's Patrol Headquarters: 9401 83rd Ave N, Brooklyn Park, MN 55445 (8 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.)
- Hennepin County Government Center: 300 S. 6th St., Tower A, Minneapolis, MN 55418.
- Rockford High School: 7600 County Rd. 50, Rockford, MN 55373 (During school hours)
Hennepin County Library Locations
- Arvonne Fraser Library: 122 4th St. SE, Minneapolis, MN 55414
- Brookdale Library: 6125 Shingle Creek Pkwy., Brooklyn Center, MN 55430
- East Lake Library: 2727 East Lake St., Minneapolis, MN 55406
- Eden Prairie Library: 565 Prairie Center Drive, Eden Prairie, MN 55344
- Excelsior Library: 337 Water St., Excelsior, MN 55331
- Franklin Library: 1314 E. Franklin Ave., Minneapolis, MN 55404
- Golden Valley Library: 830 Winnetka Ave. N, Golden Valley, MN 55427
- Hosmer Library: 347 E. 36th, Minneapolis, MN 55408
- Linden Hills Library: 2900 W. 43rd St., Minneapolis, MN 55410
- Minneapolis Central Library: 300 Nicollet Mall, Minneapolis, MN 55401
- Nokomis Library: 5100 34th S., Minneapolis, MN 55417
- North Regional Library: 1315 Lowry Ave. N, Minneapolis, MN 55411
- Northeast Library: 2200 Central Ave., Minneapolis, MN 55418
- Oxboro Library: 8801 Portland Ave. S, Bloomington, MN 55420
- Penn Lake Library: 8800 Penn Ave. S, Minneapolis, MN 55431
- Ridgedale Library: 12601 Ridgedale Dr., Minnetonka, MN 55305
- Walker Library: 2880 Hennepin Ave., Minneapolis, MN 55408
- Washburn Library: 5244 Lyndale Ave., S, Minneapolis, MN 55419
- Westonka Library: Commerce Blvd., Mound, MN 55364
Invite us to your Night to Unite
Night to Unite is an annual community safety event in August. It promotes relationships among neighbors. It also promotes relationships between local law enforcement and neighborhoods.
Block parties are a chance for sheriff's staff to meet community members face to face.
On request, we may be able to attend your Night to Unite event. For example, we may be able to send a sheriff's deputy, K9 team, dive team, or other staff member.
Requests for Night to Unite 2025 will begin in early summer 2025.
Attend the citizen academy
This eight-week program is designed to give participants insight into public safety and the Hennepin County Sheriff's Office. It is open to the public and free. Participants must be 18 years of age or older.
The program runs one night a week for 8 weeks and includes visits to our facilities around the county, including the Public Safety Facility (jail) and Emergency Communications Center (911 dispatch).
The 2025 Citizens Academy will take place in the fall on Thursday evenings from September 18 to November 6. Applications are being accepted now.
Submit a tip to the sheriff's office
Examples of what to report
- Drug activity
- Cold cases (cases open for a long period of time without progress)
- Suspicious activity
- General crime (not an emergency, but an ongoing issue)
Ways to submit tips
- Submit an anonymous tip online
- Call 1-888-988-TIPS (8477)
- Text 847 411 – Start message with “HCSOTip”
- Visit Crime Stoppers of MN
- For an emergency, call 911