Minnesota House pulls $ 35 million security fund for official trials

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) – A proposal by Governor Tim Walz to create a $ 35 million fund to strengthen security during the murder trial of a former Minneapolis officer accused of killing George Floyd stopped at the Democratic-controlled Minnesota House in Monday, when leaders withdrew the bill, acknowledging that they did not have enough votes to pass it.

With only three weeks left before the trial, House majority leader Ryan Winkler of Golden Valley acted abruptly to postpone the debate indefinitely after accusing the Republican-controlled Senate of “a cynical and amoral political game, playing with people’s lives.” Legislative leaders and the governor must now fight to find an alternative or make use of existing resources.

Instead of providing state money, the Senate voted 35-32 to approve a very different proposal that would allow the state to garnish money that Minneapolis obtains from the state’s Local Government Aid program to ensure that other law enforcement agencies are reimbursed for their costs of contributing employees for what is expected to be a major security effort.

Democratic House Speaker Melissa Hortman of Brooklyn Park acknowledged at a news conference that House Democrats, who hold only a 70-64 majority, are not united. She said they needed “some Republican votes” to approve the bill, but were told they would have none.

Winkler said before interrupting the debate that it was impossible to find the Senate in half. He accused Republican senators of using his debate to “demonize, attack and worsen the trauma of people who have already suffered so much”.

Walz had proposed a $ 35 million account for State Aid and Emergencies (SAFE) this would reimburse local governments, not just Minneapolis, for providing mutual assistance for “extraordinary or unplanned public security events”. They would include, but not be limited to, the trial of Derek Chauvin, who is expected to draw worldwide attention when it starts on March 8, and the trial in August of three other former officers accused in the case.

Local, state and federal officials have been preparing for demonstrations and potential civil unrest for months. They fear a repeat of the violence which broke out after the protests started in Minneapolis and spread across the world, leading to a national reckoning on the race. Floyd, a black man in handcuffs, died on May 25 after Chauvin, who is white, pressed his knee against Floyd’s neck for several minutes, while Floyd said he was unable to breathe.

Walz authorized the Minnesota National Guard earlier this month to deploy in preparation. But the Guard is not considered a law enforcement agency and must partner with the police to prevent or respond to any unrest. He said that the SAFE account would ensure that there were enough officers on site. The governor was criticized by Republicans last summer for not sending the Guard earlier to contain the disturbances.

Senate Republicans said in the debate over their bill that taxpayers from Minnesota and other communities should not have to bail out Minneapolis, where the police department has more than 200 deployable police officers under its authorized strength and some board members have been pressing to empty or dismantle the department. Republican Senator Bill Weber of Luverne also cited the city’s $ 8 million cut to your police budget.

Senate majority leader Paul Gazelka of East Gull Lake said residents across the state are “very, very frustrated with the city of Minneapolis, the leadership that continually talked about the eviction of the police and, worse than that, , regularly based, spoke terribly about them. ”

Democrats and groups representing Minnesota cities and counties said the mutual aid system was already working well. They warned against weakening a system that benefits communities large and small across the state. Senator Erin Murphy of St. Paul cited several examples of communities helping each other in disasters and emergencies, including last week’s shooting at a medical clinic in Buffalo, Minnesota, which left one person dead and four others injured.

“We are here today bringing a solution to a problem that does not exist,” she said.

Hortman told reporters that he is already arguing with Gazelka and Republican House leaders about what comes next. Winkler said preparations for the Chauvin trial will continue and do not depend on approval of the SAFE account.