Sharon Lubinski, first openly gay U.S. marshal and longtime MPD leader, dies at 71

Sharon Lubinski, whose four decades in law enforcement saw her become the first woman to serve as U.S. marshal in Minnesota and first openly gay person to do so, has died at 71.

Lubinski died April 19, according to her obituary and a subsequent announcement from U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar, who recommended in 2010 that President Barack Obama select her to lead the agency responsible for protecting Minnesota's federal judges and courthouses. The cause of death was not given, though her obituary noted that family members were by her side.

The Green Bay, Wis., native became among the nation's highest-level female law enforcement officials before retiring in 2016 and left a legacy still felt by those who have filled her shoes.

"Minnesota is a safer place because of Sharon," said Klobuchar this week, adding: "She is an inspiration whose story and actions have encouraged more people from all backgrounds to serve."

Lubinski first worked as a deputy for the Dane County Sheriff's Office in south-central Wisconsin before joining the Minneapolis Police Department in 1987. There, she held jobs such as precinct commander, deputy chief of patrol and assistant police chief — and was once a finalist for police chief. As U.S. marshal, Klobuchar said, Lubinski was "instrumental" in the manhunt to capture the man who shot and killed Mendota Heights police officer Scott Patrick during a traffic stop in 2014.

In 1993, Lubinski came out as a lesbian both to her leaders and colleagues at MPD and in subsequent media interviews. She told the Star Tribune at the time her decision was partly informed by the recent murders of gay men in Minneapolis and seeing how police and the gay community struggled to work together.

"If I'm going to be a real person and if I'm ever going to make real change as a cop, I have to do it as a lesbian cop," she told the newspaper. "I can no longer justify keeping this to myself."

Then-Police Chief John Laux told the Star Tribune that, as Lubinski opened up about her life, he watched her nerves and unease recede: "It became clearer to me just how torturous it is for someone to lead a double life," said Laux, who later chaired the selection committee that eventually helped Klobuchar recommend Lubinski for U.S. marshal.

"Everywhere she went she was well regarded by the troops," said Greg Hestness, who worked with Lubinski at the MPD. "When you're in a position where you are setting the tone and challenging stereotypes, to still be respected by the troops is a sign of a lot of leadership."

The role of U.S. marshal can in some districts be approached as a "semiretirement job" or "honorific cap" to a long law enforcement career, said Chief U.S. District Judge Patrick Schiltz. But Schiltz said that was never the case with Lubinski.

"She was the type of person if you would express a concern to her you only had to express it once," said Schiltz, who added that Lubinski set herself apart by meeting individually with each federal judge as she began the job. "You knew she would take it seriously, you knew she would follow up on it and you knew she would get back to you."

U.S. District Judge John Tunheim, chief judge during Lubinski's tenure as marshal, described her as "the most effective law enforcement partner with whom I have ever worked."

"She was the definition of outstanding leadership: encouraging, courageous, selfless and a remarkable decisionmaker, greatly respected by judges and deputy marshals alike," Tunheim said. "Not only was she the best female law enforcement leader in America, she was simply one of the best law enforcement leaders in America, period."

Eddie Frizell, the current U.S. marshal, worked for Lubinski while she was a sergeant at the Minneapolis Police Department. He described her as a "guiding light" in his first days on the job. The two met on Frizell's first 911 response call on a dark, rainy night in north Minneapolis "during a very complicated and violent domestic scene."

"She just looked at me and said, essentially, 'follow me,'" Frizell said. "And that was very reassuring."

Lubinski is survived by her spouse of 38 years, Fran; her brother, Travis, and her sister, Toni. Services will be held May 19 in Edina.

Friends and colleagues remember her Green Bay Packer fandom being the source of good-natured ribbing in the office, and how Lubinski clung to passions that included opera, running, astronomy and birding. Indeed, in lieu of flowers — "and to conserve the birds she loved" — her obituary asked that tributes be made in the form of donations to the International Crane Foundation in Baraboo, Wis.