Former Mayor Hit, Killed By Wright County Deputy In St. Michael

St. Michael MN

27 December, 2021

1:55 PM

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ST. MICHAEL, MN — Former St. Michael Mayor Harold Welter died Thursday after he was hit by a Wright County deputy's SUV, according to officials. Welter, 84, was struck around 7:55 p.m. Thursday in a driveway in the 400 block of North Main St. by a Wright County Sheriff's Department deputy who was responding to a medical emergency, the Minnesota State Patrol said. Welter was taken to Maple Grove Hospital but died from his injuries, police said. The Minnesota State Patrol said it is investigating Welter's death at the request of the Wright County Sheriff's Department. Snow and ice were factors in the fatal crash, the State Patrol said. The deputy driving the patrol SUV was 37-year-old Dustin Hatzenbeller, of Otsego, according to the Minnesota State Patrol. Hatzenbeller is cooperating with the investigation and is on paid administrative leave, the Star Tribune reports. City officials in a news release Sunday called Welter a "true public servant" and said the former mayor will be "greatly missed by his St. Michael community." Welter served on the St. Michael City Council from 1977-87 before leading the city as mayor for four years. Welter served in the St. Michael Fire Department for 23 years and was a member of the St. Michael Lions Club for more than four decades, including four terms as president, officials said. Welter's funeral service is scheduled to be held Thursday at St. Michael Catholic Church, 11300 Frankfort Parkway NE, the Star Tribune reports.