MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The Justice Department alleged Friday that Minneapolis police have systematically discriminated against Black and Native American people for years and often violated constitutional rights following a sweeping investigation that began after George Floyd was killed.
The two-year probe found that Minneapolis officers used excessive force, including “unjustified deadly force,” and violated the rights of people engaged in constitutionally protected speech. The investigation also found that both police and the city discriminated against people with “behavioral health disabilities” when officers are called for help.
“We observed many MPD officers who did their difficult work with professionalism, courage and respect,” Attorney General Merrick Garland told a news conference in Minneapolis. “But the patterns and practices we observed made what happened to George Floyd possible.”
Garland said officers routinely disregarded the safety of people in their custody, noting numerous situations in which a person in custody complained that they could not breathe, and officers replied with a version of “You can breathe. You’re talking right now.”
The report included allegations that police “used dangerous techniques and weapons against people who committed at most a petty offense and sometimes no offense at all.” Officers “used force to punish people who made officers angry 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.
