A fifth-generation Minnesota resident, Arradondo joined the MPD in 1989 as a patrol officer in the Fourth Precinct and worked his way up through the police ranks until he was named the inspector for the First Precinct. In 2007, he and four other African-American officers sued the department alleging discrimination in promotions, pay, and discipline. The lawsuit was settled by the city for $740,000, and in December 2012 Arrandondo was promoted to head of the Internal Affairs Unit responsible for investigation of allegations of officer misconduct. He was a Deputy Chief and Assistant Chief before being nominated as Minneapolis's new Chief of Police by the Mayor of Minneapolis, after the resignation of former police chief Janeé Harteau in mid-2017, shortly after the shooting of Justine Damond by former Minneapolis police officer Mohammed Noor. During Super Bowl LII, Arradondo authorized banning Philadelphia-style tailgating. As police chief, Arradondo stopped the practice of low-level marijuana stings due to complaints about racial disparities. Medaria also codified the relationship between police and emergency medical service providers in his current role as police chief. Arradondo was chief of police during the high-profile police custody death of George Floyd and subsequent widespread protests and destruction. He fired all four officers involved and later directly addressed the family of George Floyd, stating that his position is that all four officers involved are at fault and he is awaiting charges from the county attorney and/or FBI. On June 10, 2020, Arradondo announced both the cancellation of future contract negotiations with the police union and plans to bring in outside experts to examine how the contract with the Police Officers Federation can be restructured to create a warning system which will provide transparency about "troubled" officers and “flexibility for true reform.” On June 16, 2020, Arradondo dismissed the significance of recent reports of 19 departures from the Minneapolis Police Department within a year, revealing that the Minneapolis Police Department in fact experiences an average of 40 departures per year. During a 60 Minutes interview with Lesley Stahl, which aired on June 21, 2020, Arradondo alleged that there was distrust among law enforcement in Minneapolis' black community and that "we need good policing. We know it's broken. We need to make changes." However, he also refused to back protest demands for dismantling and defunding the Minneapolis Police Department and instead suggested enforcing things such as recent bans which on restraints such as chokeholds and neck restraints and also eliminating barriers which protect Minneapolis police officers from misconduct charges and police union contracts which allow officers who are fired or disciplined to get arbitration.
Personal life
Arradondo is African-American, and the first black person to serve as chief of the Minneapolis Police Department. He is also Latino as his family is Colombian.
