Prosecutor: Minneapolis cops justified in shooting black man
A prosecutor announced Monday that two Minneapolis police officers won’t be charged in last month’s fatal shooting of a black man. Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman said Thurman Blevins was fleeing from officers with a loaded handgun and had refused commands to stop and show his hands. Blevins took the gun out of his pocket and turned toward officers, Freeman said. “The decision to use deadly force against Mr. Blevins under those circumstances was authorized,” said Freeman, adding that officers fired 14 shots and hit Blevins four times. Freeman’s decision came after the officers’ body-camera video was released late Sunday night by the city. And it came by news release after he was shouted down at a news conference by community members where he had planned to detail the case. Jeniffer Rohr, a friend of the family, referred to audio in which one officer is heard saying “He’s got a gun” as their squad car rolled up to where Blevins was seated on a curb. “He just gave himself a license to shoot Mr. Blevins,” Rohr said. Officers Justin Schmidt and Ryan Kelly were responding to a 911 call of a man firing a gun into the air on the city’s north side June 23. The video released Sunday shows them pulling their cruiser up and Blevins seated on a curb near a woman with a child in a stroller. As the officers pull up, one says, “He’s got a gun!” Blevins jumps up and runs, as the officers yell “Stop, stop! Put your hands up! I will (expletive) shoot you!” In a chase that takes less than a minute, Blevins yells back, “I didn’t do nothing bro,” ”Please don’t shoot“and ”Leave me alone.“An enhanced version of the video has a red circle drawn around Blevins’ hand to highlight what appears to be a gun. After the chase turns down an alley, Blevins is shot, still running. Lt. Bob Kroll, the head of the police union, said the footage proved the two officers acted justifiably. He said the video showed Blevins firing a shot as he ran. “You shoot until the threat ends,” Kroll said. The shooting has been under investigation by the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension. It wasn’t immediately clear whether the BCA had finished its work, and officials didn’t immediately respond to messages Monday. Investigators have not previously said Blevins fired a shot while running.