Minneapolis on Friday reversed its original effort to expropriate the city’s police department after George Floyd’s death in police custody, after residents begged the city to hire more police, citing longer response times and increased violent crime.
On Friday, the City Council voted unanimously to approve $ 6.4 million in additional funding that the police had requested.
ARCHIVE: Protesters are arrested after a curfew in Minneapolis, while protests continued after the death of George Floyd, who died after being restrained by Minneapolis police on Memorial Day.
(AP)
The department claims to have only 638 police officers available to work – about 200 less than normal. An unprecedented number of police officers resigned or were on prolonged sick leave following Floyd’s death and the ensuing unrest.
With new recruiting classes, the city predicts it will have 674 officers available by the end of the year, with 28 more in the hiring process, the Star Tribune reported.
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Days before the City Council vote, Mayor Jacob Frey and Chief of Police Medaria Arradondo promised to update the application process for police recruits to include questions about whether they lived in Minneapolis, have degrees in criminology, social work, psychology or counseling, and whether they volunteer or participate in programs like the League of Police Activities.
Meanwhile, three members of the City Council proposed replacing the police department with a public security department that would include law enforcement and other services. Yes 4 Minneapolis, a coalition of local community groups, is also collecting signatures to try to get a similar proposal in the November vote.
The Star Tribune reported that the Yes 4 Minneapolis committee is being fueled by a half-million-dollar donation from the Washington, DC-based Open Society Policy Center, linked to billionaire George Soros.
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The petition would remove the police department’s language from the city’s charter and create a Public Security Department focused on public health, “including licensed peacekeepers, if necessary to fulfill the department’s responsibilities.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.