“The investigation I am announcing today will assess whether the Minneapolis police department engages in a pattern or practice of using excessive force, including during protests,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said during a press conference.
Fired Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin has been convicted of second degree murder, third degree murder, and second degree manslaughter.
Minneapolis City Council voted unanimously on Friday for the development of a new Traffic Safety Division, which would be unarmed and separate from the Minneapolis Police Department.
Kim Potter, who resigned from the Brooklyn Center Police Department Tuesday, was arrested about 11:30 a.m. Wednesday by Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension agents at the BCA in St. Paul.
“Burn the precincts to the ground, in every city and every town!” a mob marching through Portland was filmed chanting.
Mayor Mike Elliott is now in charge of the police department. He also fired City Manager Curt Boganey
Another group of protesters broke into about 20 businesses at a regional shopping center, with some businesses looted, according to the police and local media reports.
Hennepin County District Judge Peter Cahill removed the two who said under his questioning they had heard about a federal lawsuit settlement reached last week and admitted it affected their ability to presume Chauvin is innocent during the course of the trial.
Eric Nelson, Chauvin’s defense attorney, questioned the “suspicious timing” of the settlement and argued it was “highly prejudicial” against his client. He called on Hennepin County District Court Judge Peter A. Cahill to “at least” call back the jurors already seated in the case to question them to see if they had read the news of the settlement and if they could continue to be impartial in the case.
“I think it’s a potential disaster for (former officer Derek) Chauvin,” said Mary Moriarty, former chief Hennepin County public defender. She said if she were Chauvin’s attorney, she would request a mistrial.