U.S. sets investigation of Minneapolis police
Inquiry to key on ‘pattern, practice’
WASHINGTON — The Justice Department is opening a sweeping investigation into policing practices in Minneapolis after a former officer was convicted in the killing of George Floyd there, Attorney General Merrick Garland announced Wednesday.
The decision was announced a day after the former officer, Derek Chauvin, was found guilty of murder and manslaughter in Floyd’s death last May, a verdict
that set off a wave of relief across the country. Floyd’s death had led to months of protests against policing and the treatment of Black people in the United States.
The Justice Department already was investigating whether Chauvin and the other officers involved in Floyd’s death violated his civil rights.
“Yesterday’s verdict in the state criminal trial does not address potentially systemic policing issues in Minneapolis,” Garland said.
The new investigation is known as a “pattern or practice” — examining whether there is a pattern or practice of unconstitutional or unlawful policing — and will be a more sweeping review of the entire department. It may result in major changes to policing in the Minnesota city.
It will examine the use of force by police officers, including force used during protests, and whether the department engages in discriminatory practices. It also will look into the department’s handling of misconduct allegations and its treatment of people with behavioral health issues and will assess the department’s current systems of accountability, Garland said.
The Minneapolis police said in a statement that Chief Medaria Arradondo “welcomes this investigation” and will fully cooperate with federal prosecutors. Arradondo “understands that the intent of this inquiry is to reveal any deficiencies or unwanted conduct within the department and provide adequate resources and direction to correct them,” the statement said.
A senior Justice Department official said prosecutors chose to announce the investigation a day after the verdict because they did not want to do anything to interfere with Chauvin’s trial. The official would not discuss details of the investigation publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.
Three other ex-Minneapolis police officers charged in Floyd’s death will be tried together beginning Aug. 23. The official said their trial is far enough off that officials believed it was still appropriate to make the announcement Wednesday, even though the defendants are awaiting trial on state charges.
It’s unclear whether the years under investigation will begin when Floyd died or before. Garland said a public report would be issued if the department finds a pattern or practice of unconstitutional policing. The government also could lodge a lawsuit against the police department, which in the past have typically ended in settlement agreements or consent decrees to force changes.
The Minneapolis Police Department also is being investigated by the Minnesota Department of Human Rights, which is looking into the department’s policies and practices over the past decade to see if it engaged in systemic discriminatory practices.
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said city officials “welcome the investigation as an opportunity to continue working toward deep change and accountability in the Minneapolis Police Department.”
In a joint statement, Minneapolis City Council members said they “fully support” the Justice Department using its “full weight of authority to hold the Minneapolis Police Department accountable for any and all abuses of power and harms to our community and stand ready to aid in this process as full partners.”
“The City Council’s oversight of the Minneapolis Police Department has been historically constrained by the City Charter and state law and we welcome new tools to pursue transformational, structural changes to how the City provides for public safety. We look forward to doing this critical work with every tool available.”
The Justice Department official said attorneys from the department’s civil rights division are in Minneapolis, working with the U.S. attorney’s office and speaking with community groups and others.
Floyd, 46, was arrested after a counterfeit $20 bill was used to pay for a pack of cigarettes at a corner market. He panicked, pleaded that he was claustrophobic and struggled with police when they tried to put him in a squad car. They put him on the ground instead.
The centerpiece of the case was bystander video of Floyd, handcuffed behind his back, gasping repeatedly, “I can’t breathe,” and onlookers yelling at Chauvin to stop as the officer pressed his knee on or close to Floyd’s neck for what authorities say was about 9½ minutes, including several minutes after Floyd’s breathing had stopped and he had no pulse.
Floyd’s death May 25 became a flash point in the national conversation about the deaths of Black Americans at the hands of law enforcement officers and sparked worldwide protests.
At trial, Chauvin’s defense attorney persistently suggested that Chauvin’s knee wasn’t on Floyd’s neck for as long as prosecutors argued, suggesting instead it was across Floyd’s back, shoulder blades and arm.
The Justice Department previously had considered opening a pattern or practice investigation into the Police Department soon after Floyd’s death, but then-Attorney General Bill Barr was hesitant to do so at the time, fearing that it could cause further divisions among law enforcement officials as protests and civil unrest spread, three people familiar with the matter told the AP.
Garland said the challenges faced “are deeply woven into our history.”
“They did not arise today or last year,” Garland said. “Building trust between community and law enforcement will take time and effort by all of us, but we undertake this task with determination and urgency knowing that change cannot wait.”
Police unions and police chiefs have bristled at federal efforts to prompt changes in training and the use of force.
“Most officers do their jobs honorably and lawfully,” Garland said. “I strongly believe a good officer does not want to work in a system that allows bad practices. Good officers welcome accountability because accountability is an essential part in building trust with the local community and public safety requires public trust.”
‘TREMENDOUS PROGRESS’
Meanwhile, members of Congress are working on legislation to overhaul the nation’s policing laws, heeding President Joe Biden’s admonition that the guilty verdict in Floyd’s death is “not enough” for a nation confronting a legacy of police violence.
Legislation that was once stalled on Capitol Hill is now closer than ever to consensus, lawmakers of both parties said Wednesday.
Tuesday’s verdict opened “a new phase of a long struggle to bring justice to America,” declared Rep. Karen Bass, D-Calif., in urging passage of the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act. “This is the human-rights issue in the United States of America.”
The revived effort is being led by Black lawmakers including Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., who briefed key Republican senators on Wednesday, updating his colleagues on quiet negotiations that have been underway with Democrats for nearly two months. He told reporters he expected to wrap up those talks with the Democrats within two weeks.
“We’ve made tremendous progress,” Scott said on Capitol Hill.
Democrats say they are ready.
“This has to come to a stop,” said Rep. James Clyburn, D-S.C., the highest ranking Black elected official in Congress.
Congress struggled with a police overhaul bill last summer in the immediate aftermath of Floyd’s death, but the legislation went nowhere after Democrats and Republicans could not agree to a compromise package.
The House, led by Democrats, has now twice approved the sweeping overhaul, named after Floyd, that would be the most substantial federally ordered changes to policing in a generation.
The bill would allow police officers to be sued and damages awarded for violating people’s constitutional rights, limiting “qualified immunity” protections now in place for law enforcement officials.
The legislation would ban the use of chokeholds and would create a national databases of police misconduct in an effort to prevent “bad apple” officers from being hired by other departments.
A Republican bill from Scott does not go as far as the House-passed measure. It was blocked last year by Senate Democrats.
The GOP’s Justice Act would step up compliance by law enforcement officials in submitting use-of-force reports to a national database. It also would require compliance reports for no-knock warrants, like the kind officers used to enter the residence when Breonna Taylor was killed in Kentucky.
The Democratic and Republican bills do share some provisions, including a measure making lynching a federal hate crime.
Talks in recent weeks have centered on one of the main differences, the limits on the public’s ability to sue law enforcement officers under “qualified immunity.” One alternative being discussed would allow police departments, rather than individual officers, to be held liable.
“I think that is a logical step forward,” said Scott, putting more of the burden on the department rather than the officer.
Though Biden is eager to get a police reform bill on his desk, press secretary Jen Psaki says the decision on what legislation is passed and when is the responsibility of Congress.
The White House is giving lawmakers “space” to hash out details, Psaki said.
It’s unclear whether the years under investigation will begin when Floyd died or before.
Information for this article was contributed by Michael Balsamo, Amy Forliti, Lisa Mascaro, Darlene Superville and Kat Stafford of The Associated Press; by David Nakamura, Mark Berman, Matt Zapotosky and Holly Bailey of The Washington Post; and by Andy Mannix of the Star Tribune (TNS).