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 sentencewhich 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