State of Emergency, Curfew Set in Twin Cities After Fatal Police Shooting
A state of emergency was declared in the Twin Cities and a curfew set set from 7 p.m. Monday, April 12, until 6 a.m. Tuesday.
There were exceptions for first responders, those going to work or the hospital and credentialed media members. The curfew covered all of Hennepin, Ramsey, Dakota and Anoka counties.
The announcement came Monday afternoon at a joint media conference from Operation Safety Net, a conglomeration of law enforcement entities that was formed to handle possible unrest with the ongoing trial of former Minneapolis officer Derek Chauvin.
BODYCAM: Brooklyn Center Officer Mistakes Gun for Taser, Fatally Shoots Man
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter and others called for peace after the fatal police shooting of a man during a traffic stop in Brooklyn Center on Sunday, a suburb just to the northwest of Minneapolis.
20-year-old Daunte Wright was shot by an officer who appears to have mistaken her service weapon for her Taser, according to body camera footage released Monday by police. She can be heard yelling “Taser!” before firing one round from her live firearm. That officer has not yet been identified, she is on administrative leave and the Brooklyn Center mayor has voiced support for her termination.
PREVIOUSLY: Man, 20, Fatally Shot by Brooklyn Center Police
Looting and unrest broke out Sunday night in Brooklyn Center, Brooklyn Park, Minneapolis and some areas of St. Paul and into the morning Monday, with dozens of businesses damaged. A large crowd stationed outside the Brooklyn Center Police Department was met with gas and rubber bullets, with National Guard members being stationed in the area Monday.
Brooklyn Center Mayor Mike Elliot announced that the City Council had voted Monday afternoon to give control of the city’s police department over to the office of the mayor, news that was quickly followed with word that City Manager Curt Boganey had been fired. “Effective immediately,” Elliot wrote in a tweet, Boganey was being relieved of his duties and the deputy city manager would be taking over.
UPDATE: The Minnesota BCA has identified the officer who has been placed on leave for the shooting as officer Kim Potter, 48. She has been with the department for nearly 26 years and is president of the Brooklyn Center Police Officers’ Association. Because of the active investigation, more personnel data is not yet available.
UPDATE: 1 a.m. Tuesday, April 13
Law enforcement agencies gave an update on the state of affairs in the Twin Cities around 12:30 a.m. Tuesday after the multi-county curfew, Minnesota State Patrol Col. Matt Langer says around 40 arrests have been made, with some people cited for breaking curfew and others arrested for riot.
Col. Langer says there were several officers outside the Brooklyn Center PD who were injured as they clashed with a crowd for the second night in a row, but he described the extent of those injuries as minor.
MPD Deputy Chief Amelia Huffman said there were five confirmed business burglaries so far overnight in Minneapolis and several arrests have been made. "We are thankful there has been minimal damage to our business corridors tonight," Huffman said.
Those burglaries are: Liquor store on West Broadway Avenue, Target Express on West Lake Street, tobacco store on 46th and Nicollet, Auto Zone at 26th Avenue and Central Avenue and a shoe store on Nicollet.
There was damage to several businesses in Brooklyn Center, including the Dollar Tree, but the extent of the damage there is unknown.