This town no longer has a police department since Harley Nord belatedly retired after 25 years as police chief, detective and rank-and-file officer all rolled into one.
The 69-year-old lawman was replaced after his exit May 30 with a contract for law enforcement services from the Wilkin County Sheriff's Department.No longer will the listing for "police" be Nord's home number.
No longer will he be summoned whenever a dog or cat gets loose in this community of 443 people, 180 miles northwest of Minneapolis.
"He was a very good small-town policeman," said Wesley Balken, city council member and postmaster. "He was everyone's friend, and he always had the interest of the community in mind."
The grandson of Norwegian immigrants who settled in Rothsay, Nord still speaks with a Scandinavian lilt. His children and granddchildren live in town, and he knows just about everyone else.
But he never had a problem doing his job. "I like to give people breaks," Nord said. "But if they got it coming, they got it coming."