Fifteen years ago, Ler Htoo was living in a refugee camp on the other side of the world. On Wednesday, St. Paul’s police chief was pinning Ler Htoo’s new sergeant badge on his uniform.

“That alone, if it does not give you the inspiration to go out and do great things in your life, you’re hard pressed to find a better example,” Chief Axel Henry said to applause.

Ler Htoo made history in 2014 when he became St. Paul’s first officer from the Karen ethnic group and he’s done it again by becoming the highest-ranked Karen officer in St. Paul, and likely Minnesota and the U.S.

More than 20,000 Karen people live in Minnesota, the largest group of Karen people in the U.S., according to the Karen Organization of Minnesota. Pronounced “Kah-REN,” they are originally from Burma (now called Myanmar), but left because of persecution by the Myanmar government.

Ler Htoo lived in Myanmar until he was 3 and spent the next 15 years of his life in Thailand. He and his family moved from a refugee camp to St. Paul in 2009 when he was 18. He’s now a U.S. citizen.

He attended St. Paul’s Como Park High School and got to explore different career paths and one was policing, which interested him most. He went on to Hennepin County Technical College.

Ler Htoo followed paths that have been developed for young people to become St. Paul officers — he was first a St. Paul Police Explorer and a community-liaison officer — and is “a real success story for us,” Henry said.

After working as a St. Paul patrol officer, he was an officer technician in the department’s forensic services unit — assisting with processing crime scenes, crime scene photography and DNA collection. He’s most recently been stationed in the traffic and pedestrian safety unit, and is going back to forensics work.

“I love this job,” Ler Htoo, 32, said Wednesday of his career.

He’s interpreted for Karen speakers during investigations. And he’s earned a medal of commendation among other recognitions.

There are now four other St. Paul officers of Karen heritage, Ler Htoo said. After Ler Htoo took the sergeant’s exam and did well, Henry selected him for promotion.

“We’re trying to get to a point where we don’t have any firsts anymore, but these are very important because it’s not just important that our community sees themselves in these uniforms,” Henry said, “but, as we bring on new officers, they need to see themselves ascending through our ranks, so they know that they’re wanted, needed and appreciated and valued at those positions.”

Ler Htoo’s family joined him at Wednesday’s promotion ceremony. His parents still live on St. Paul’s East Side. In his spare time, he enjoys spending time with his wife and three children.

Eh Tah Khu, co-executive director of the Karen Organization of Minnesota, said Ler Htoo taking on a leadership role is “an achievement for the community” and will inspire other people.

After Ler Htoo thanked Henry on Wednesday for the opportunity, the police chief responded by pointing out the Brazilian jujitsu the new sergeant does.

“He goes to that jujitsu gym, and he’s down on the mats,” Henry said. “Do you think they gave him a blue belt? No, he went out and he earned it. We thank you for coming out and earning a promotion. We thank you for taking on more responsibility. Congratulations.”

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