Following an investigation prompted by the death of George Floyd, the Justice Department accused the Minneapolis police on Friday of a consistent pattern of violating constitutional rights, discrimination against minorities, and “excessive” and “unjustified deadly force” in policing.
The sweeping civil rights investigation was conducted over a span of two years by the U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division and the U.S. Attorney’s Office District of Minnesota Civil Division.
The probe culminated in a report, released Friday, that accused the City of Minneapolis and the Minneapolis Police Department (MPD) of a pattern of violating civil rights, discrimination, and heavy-handed policing tactics.
“To be sure, many MPD officers do their difficult work with professionalism, courage, and respect,” the report’s executive summary reads. “Nevertheless, our investigation found that the systemic problems in MPD made what happened to George Floyd possible.”
The probe was launched in April 2021, a day after former officer Derek Chauvin was convicted of murder and manslaughter in the May 25, 2020, death of Floyd.
Floyd repeatedly said he couldn’t breathe before going limp as Chauvin knelt on his neck for over 9 minutes. The incident was recorded by a bystander and sparked months of mass protests.
In the wake of the report’s findings, the City of Minneapolis and the MPD have both agreed to a deal known as a federal consent decree, which will require reforms to be overseen by an independent monitor and approved by a federal judge.
‘Dangerous Techniques and Weapons’
The report revealed that Minneapolis officers frequently employed excessive force, including instances of “unjustified deadly force,” while also infringing upon the rights of individuals exercising their constitutionally protected speech.The probe further highlighted that both the police force and the city exhibited discriminatory behavior toward individuals with “behavioral health disabilities” when officers were called upon for assistance.
“We found that the Minneapolis Police Department routinely uses excessive force, often when no force is necessary, including unjust deadly force and unreasonable use of tasers,” Attorney General Merrick Garland told a news conference in Minneapolis on Friday.
Garland expressed concerns that police officers were found to have fired their weapons at individuals without adequately assessing the presence of an actual threat.
The report further alleges that the police have, for an extended period, “used dangerous techniques and weapons against individuals who, at most, committed a petty offense or sometimes no offense at all.”
Moreover, it states that officers have resorted to “using force to punish individuals who have angered or criticized the police.”
Police also “patrolled neighborhoods differently based on their racial composition and discriminated based on race when searching, handcuffing or using force against people during stops,” the report said.
As per the report, the city dispatched officers to respond to behavioral health-related 911 calls, “even when a law enforcement response was not appropriate or necessary, sometimes with tragic results. These actions put MPD officers and the Minneapolis community at risk.”
The conclusions were drawn from examinations of documents and incident files, scrutiny of body-worn camera recordings, analysis of data provided by the city and police, and engagement in ride-alongs and conversations with officers, residents, and various individuals, as outlined in the report.
Joining Garland at the press conference were Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey and Police Chief Brian O'Hara.
Both the city and the police department have agreed to a federal consent decree in light of the report’s findings. This agreement entails implementing reforms that will be supervised by an independent monitor and subject to approval by a federal judge. Similar reform initiatives have been undertaken in Seattle, New Orleans, Baltimore, and Ferguson, Missouri.
O’Hara, who led Newark, New Jersey, police through a consent decree, said the Minneapolis department was committed to creating “the kind of police department that every Minneapolis resident deserves.”
Frey acknowledged the significant work that lies ahead.
‘Considerable Daily Challenges’
While the report was broadly critical, it did note the challenges of policing while acknowledging the city and Minneapolis police have already made headway with reforms.“We acknowledge the considerable daily challenges that come with being an MPD officer,” the report’s authors wrote. “Policing, by its nature, can take a toll on the psychological and emotional health of officers, and the challenges of the last few years have only exacerbated that toll for some officers.”
Besides having to make split-second decisions and risk their lives in the line of duty, officers at the department have faced dwindling morale as hundreds left the force since the Floyd protests engulfed the city in the spring of 2020, the report said.
“MPD officers work hard to provide vital services, and many spoke with us about their deep connection to the City and their desire to see MPD do better,” the report stated.
The investigators said in the report that “to their credit,” both the city and the MPD have “pressed ahead” with reforms since the death of Floyd led to heightened scrutiny and calls for change.
For example, the report noted that MPD policies now prohibit officers from using neck restraints.
Officers are also no longer allowed to use some crowd control weapons without permission from the chief, while “no-knock” warrants have been banned.
The city also has launched a “promising” behavioral health response program in which trained mental health professionals, rather than police officers, respond to some calls.
