Former North Dakota police chief dies in motorcycle crash in Black Hills

August 9, 2021

FARGO  – Former Devils Lake Police Chief Keith Schroeder died in a motorcycle crash in the Black Hills. The South Dakota Highway Patrol says Schroeder died July 31 when he crossed the center line and hit an oncoming motorcycle near Keystone.

Schroeder’s motorcycle went into the ditch and struck a third motorcycle, which was unoccupied and parked on the side of the road.

Schroeder died at the scene. The other motorcycle rider suffered non-life threatening injuries.

Schroeder was police chief in Devils Lake from 2009 to 2017. He left the department after a city assessment found low morale and reports of a hostile work environment at the police department.

Schroeder had also served in the Wahpeton and Grand Forks Police Departments. He was 63.