Officer who fatally shot Amir Locke won’t be charged

MINNEAPOLIS — The Minneapolis police officer who fatally shot an armed 22-yearold Amir Locke during a SWAT raid in early February will not be charged with a crime, Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman and Attorney General Keith Ellison announced Wednesday.

Calling Locke a “victim” and urging policymakers to reexamine the police tactic of noknock warrants, Ellison said his and Freeman’s office and an independent investigator reviewed the case and all determined there is not enough evidence to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Officer Mark Hanneman violated Minnesota’s use-of-force statute.

“Current law only allows us to review the case from the perspective of a ‘reasonable police officer,’” Ellison said in a virtual news conference Wednesday morning. “It would be unethical for us to file charges in a case in which we know that we will not be able to prevail because the law does not support the charges.”

The Locke family’s attorneys said their clients are “deeply disappointed by the decision” not to charge Hanneman, 34, vowing to continue the fight for justice in civil court and through advocating for stronger legislation to hold police accountable.

“The tragic death of this young man, who was not named in the search warrant and had no criminal record, should never have happened,” read the statement from attorneys Ben Crump, Jeff Storms and Antonio Romanucci. “This is only the latest reminder that we must work even harder to protect and obtain equal justice and accountability for our communities of color. No family should ever suffer like Amir’s again.”