Nearly two years after George Floyd was killed by a Minneapolis police officer, the Minnesota Department of Human Rights was preparing to announce the results of its investigation into whether the police department had a pattern of racial discrimination in doing its homework.
A positive finding could result in a consent decree – an agreement implemented by the court – having to be amended.
The state began its investigation just a week after Floyd’s death on May 25, 2020. Police officer Derek Chauvin pressed his knee to the black man’s neck for nine and a half minutes in an incident that sparked global protests against racism and police brutality. Chauvin, who is white, was convicted of murder last year. Three other officers in the case — Tou Thao, Thomas Lane and J. Alexander Kueng — were convicted of violating Floyd’s civil rights in a federal trial earlier this year and face a state court hearing in June.
Human Rights Commissioner Rebecca Lucero said at the time the state hoped to use the investigation to find long-term solutions to systemic change. He said the goal is to negotiate a consent decree with the city that the court could enforce with restraining orders and fines, pointing to similar deals in several cities, including Chicago, where the Justice Department found there was a long history of racial prejudice and excessive use gave police violence.
The department quickly obtained an injunction, in which the city agreed to make immediate changes, e.g. For example, banning chokeholds and requiring officers to intervene if they see another officer using undue force.
Since then, federal investigators have been sifting through decades of data, including traffic stops, searches, arrests and use of force, and examining policies and training. They also invited citizens to submit their own stories of encounters with the Minneapolis police force.
The Minnesota Department of Human Rights is the state’s civil rights watchdog. Her responsibilities include overseeing compliance with Minnesota’s Human Rights Act, which, among other things, prohibits police from discriminating on the basis of race.