Zarembinski's defense attorney petitioned the court to have Zarembinski's charge and conviction reduced to a gross misdemeanor because he struggled with chemical dependency and mental health issues.

At Zarembinki's sentencing hearing, September 6, a Ramsey County judge accepted Zarembinski's plea deal, but downwardly departed from the original charge and convicted Zarembinski of a gross misdeamor instead of a felony for the Terroristic Threat charge.

Sgt. Don Rindal, told 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS he was "disappointed" with the plea agreement and the lesser conviction because, he said, it sent the wrong message to law enforcement and could put people's safety in jeopardy.

"He pointed a rifle right at me and I was staring down the barrel," said Rindal. "I thought I might die and now the guy gets a lesser conviction and sentence which means, at some point, he will be able to legally obtain a firearm again."

Man who approached St. Paul officers with gun pleads guilty to reduced charge

The Ramsey County Attorney's Office declined a KSTP interview request and issued the following statement through an office spokesperson.

"After speaking with the victim/deputy, the Ramsey County Attorney's Office offered the defendant a plea to a felony level Terroristic Threats charge in June 2019. We were advised that the victim understood and was satisfied with any felony conviction resolution.

In between the plea and sentencing hearings, a total of five attempts were made to contact the victim through emails and voicemails to discuss this case in preparation for the sentencing hearing, and the probation officer's need to reach the victim to prepare a pre-sentence investigation for the judge. We even took the effort of contacting the victim's supervisor. The victim did not appear at the sentencing hearing.

At the sentencing hearing, the judge, over the prosecutor's objection, accepted the defense's motion to downwardly depart this sentence to a gross misdemeanor.

We are not sure what more we could have done to meet our obligations to this victim."

The Ramsey County Deputy Sheriff's Union issued the following statement regarding the Zarembinski case through Union President, Allison Schaber.

"In two recent cases, the Ramsey County Attorney's Office (RCAO) has set an alarming precedent for how it handles violent crime against law enforcement officers. The RCAO has now allowed two individuals—individuals who threatened law enforcement officers with firearms—to retain their ability to possess firearms in the future. Doing so not only fails to recognize these officers as true victims of crime, but also, more-broadly, enables the gun violence that threatens our communities and our officers on a daily basis.

In these two cases, felony assault charges were dismissed, where the facts involved an individual pointing a loaded firearm at law enforcement officers. In these cases, the officers showed tremendous restraint. They could have lawfully used deadly force, but they did not. If they had, they would likely face criticism by the RCAO and potential criminal prosecution to fullest extent of the law. The RCAO has created a shocking double standard. By the grace of the County Attorney's Office, these individuals retain the ability to threaten the public and law enforcement with firearms, while officers are then charged for lawfully defending their communities and themselves against that very threat.

In a case involving a deputy with the Ramsey County Sheriff's Office, the RCAO revictimized the deputy when it did not ensure the deputy's rights as a victim were fully protected. Both the plea hearing and sentencing occurred without the deputy's presence, or knowledge. The RCAO did not personally contact the deputy before or after the court dates, as they would do with any other victim. They did not afford the deputy the opportunity to give a victim impact statement in open court nor during the presentencing phase. Either the office failed to protect the deputy's rights as a victim, or intentionally excluded the deputy from participating in the prosecution process. This is concerning because victim rights are one of the county attorney's office primary community initiatives.

More disturbing still, is when the RCAO was asked to explain why the defendant was not convicted of felony assault, the blame was placed upon the victim. Their office said, prior to sentencing, they could not reach the deputy for input resulting in a lower level conviction. Even though, their office maintained contact with the deputy up until the plea hearing date. The deputy was never told the defense attorney told the court, "he also awaits the best opportunity to convey his apology to the deputies and to the police community at large, for what must have appeared to be little more than a suicide-by-cop at first…"

It is disappointing when elected officials condemn law enforcement officers for using justifiable lethal force while, simultaneously, condoning violent crimes being committed against law enforcement. The RCAO has clearly deviated from their stated core values in protecting victim rights in cases involving law enforcement officers. The RCAO unwillingness to prosecute these cases to their full extent sends a clear message of dehumanizing law enforcement officers."

Zarembinski, for the gross misdemeanor conviction, will serve 30 days in jail and has a one-year jail sentenced stayed if he successfully completes two years of supervised probation.