DOJ requests pause in consent decree with Minneapolis aimed at police reforms
Mpls mayor, police chief on federal consent decree
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey and Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O'Hara spoke about the U.S. Department of Justice federal consent decree that mandates reforms within the Minneapolis Police Department. FOX 9's Leah Beno asked how this could impact policing in the city.
MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - The U.S. Department of Justice has requested a pause in the federal consent decree agreement with the City of Minneapolis that would implement sweeping reforms within the police department.
Consent decree
The backstory:
On Jan. 6, the Minneapolis City Council voted to approve the federal consent decree between the DOJ and the city, which outlined sweeping reforms in how the Minneapolis police handle things like use of force, pursuits, training and discipline.
This agreement came after a two-year investigation following the murder of George Floyd. The DOJ found a pattern or practice of civil rights violations within the MPD. Some of its findings include the use of excessive force, including unjustified deadly force, unlawful discrimination against Black and Native American people and discrimination against people with behavioral health disabilities.
The day the decree was approved, recognizing that the incoming President Trump had repeatedly criticized such agreements, Mayor Jacob Frey insisted "this agreement is rock solid and our commitment to it, regardless of the circumstances, is also rock solid."
DOJ requests a pause
What's new:
While the Minneapolis City Council had approved the agreement, a federal judge assigned to review the case had not yet signed off. Now, the DOJ is requesting a temporary pause in the proceedings until March 20.
In a court document filed on Wednesday, the DOJ requested a stay so the recently confirmed U.S. attorney general, Pam Bondi, can get caught up in the case. Additionally, the DOJ argued the two pending motions have yet to be scheduled for a hearing so it wouldn’t substantially injure the other parties involved.
"The public interest weighs in favor of the United States’ receiving a temporary pause so that new leadership within the Department of Justice can be brought up to speed on this matter," the document reads.
As of Wednesday afternoon, the judge has not ruled whether to issue a 30-day stay in the proceedings.
Dig deeper:
The Minneapolis Police Department remains under a similar consent decree with the Minnesota Department of Human Rights, approved in 2023, that includes similar reform mandates.