The death of the African American George Floyd in 2020 at the hands of a police officer was not an isolated case: There were systemic problems with the Minneapolis police of excessive use of force and discrimination that ultimately led to the killing of Floyd three years ago.
This was revealed this Friday by the Department of Justice, which had launched an official investigation to determine if, beyond individual events, there were systematic problems in the police forces of this city of 425,000 inhabitants, among the most unequal in the United States.
The investigation was opened shortly after Floyd’s death, which was recorded on video and sparked a wave of protests across the United States against police violence and discrimination under the slogan “Black Lives Matter.”
For two years, researchers pored over reports of police incidents between 2016 and August 2022, analyzing footage from officers’ cameras and listening to thousands of witnesses.
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The attorney general of the United States, Merrick Garland, presented the conclusions of the investigations this Friday and assured that Minneapolis Police have seen habitual excessive use of force, even lethally, “often when it is not necessary.”
They use their weapons “without evaluating whether the person presents a threat, let alone whether the threat justifies their lethal use. They routinely disregard the safety of those in their custody and unlawfully discriminate against Black and Native American people in their law enforcement activities.” the law,” he said.
Floyd was arrested on May 25, 2020 after a store clerk accused him of trying to pay for a pack of tobacco with a counterfeit bill.
Derek Chauvin, the police officer who put his leg around Floyd’s neck as the man screamed that he couldn’t breathe, He ended up being sentenced to 22 years in prison for manslaughter in June 2021 and another 20 after pleading guilty to excessive use of force and discrimination.
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The investigation opened by the Justice Department did not seek to evaluate the behavior of a particular agent, but of the city’s police force. as a whole.
And their conclusions also put on the table that people with behavioral problems are discriminated against and that there were several episodes prior to the case of
Floyd in which the agents involved did not have to be held accountable until there were social protests.
“These systemic problems didn’t just happen in 2020. There were cases that were reported by the community long before the Department of Justice concluded that there is reasonable cause to believe that the Minneapolis Police Department and the City of Minneapolis engage in that pattern or practice of conductGarland said.
Conduct that, in your opinion, violates, among others, the fourth amendment to the Constitution, which protects citizens from unreasonable searches or searches, or the first, which protects freedom of expression, press, assembly, and the right to request compensation from the Government for grievances.
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The city and Minneapolis Police have demonstrated their commitment to moving quickly on reforms
“The findings released this Friday in the report are troubling. The city and the Minneapolis Police have demonstrated their commitment to moving quickly on reforms aimed at remedying the problems identified,” Assistant Attorney General Vanita Gupka added to the press.
Since Floyd’s death, four officers have been convicted for their direct and indirect roles in it, including Chauvin.
“His passing had an irrevocable impact on Minneapolis, our country and the world. George Floyd should be alive today,” Garland stressed.
The local authorities and those of federal justice will now discuss an agreement on the reforms to be undertaken in the police institution, whose implementation will be subject to court supervision.
Although there have already been changes, such as the prohibition of police strangulation, “there is work to be done,” the Department of Justice said, admitting that this negotiation could last months and even a year.
AFP and EFE
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