MINNEAPOLIS — The Minneapolis City Council on Friday morning unanimously approved a sweeping plan to reform policing that aims to reverse years of systemic racial bias.
The 11-0 vote means that the public can now read the 144-page settlement agreement between the city and the Minnesota Department of Human Rights, which charged the city with a pattern of discrimination in the wake of the 2020 murder of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer.
"This is the legacy of George Floyd," City Council President Andrea Jenkins said shortly before the council voted on the agreement, which restricts a host of aggressive police tactics, seeks to reduce officer misconduct, and support the wellness of cops on the street.
Some examples:
—Officers will no longer be allowed to pull over a driver solely for mechanical issues like a broken tail light.
—The smell of marijuana won't be enough to justify a stop and frisk.
—Officers will have a duty to intervene if they see a fellow officer breaking the rules. If they fail to do so, they could be disciplined as severely as the officer breaking the rules.
Mayor Jacob Frey hailed the agreement, which emerged after staggered and sometimes strained negotiations between the city and the Minnesota Department of Human Rights. But he also acknowledged challenges ahead, especially when violent crime flares.
"We are asking you to stick with us," Frey said at a morning news conference. "I'm talking to everybody. We're asking you to stick with us through thick and thin. There will be moments when some will say that this agreement needs to be pushed aside."
"I'm having a hard time imagining stronger provisions than what has been negotiated at this point," Council member Elliott Payne said of the policy changes, some of which have already been implemented and many of which have been demanded by reform advocates for years.
"Minneapolis community members deserve to be treated with humanity," Minnesota Department of Human Rights Commissioner Rebecca Lucero said in a statement.
Unanimous vote
The City Council has often been divided over how to balance the need to rein in abusive police tactics and rebuild community trust — especially among Black residents — with the need to police the city amid a stretch of high crime that followed Floyd's murder during the pandemic.
But on Friday, the support of all 11 members present — Council members Lisa Goodman and Emily Koski were absent for unrelated reasons — was striking, although many mentioned the trauma of what came before.
"While this document will do us a lot of good, it's hard for me to say I'm proud of this document because it's a reflection of how wrong things have gone," Council member Jeremiah Ellison said.
Several council members acknowledged that the public has had no opportunity to comment on the official plan, but they noted that community opinions are reflected throughout. Had the council not approved the plan, it's unclear what would have happened next.
"Frankly I think this document is a shift in the power dynamic from where it is now where we have one or two people who have power over what happens in our police department," Council member Aisha Chughtai said, adding later, "I'm really, really optimistic that we have a document that will have some teeth to it."
Council member LaTrisha Vetaw said: "We all want better policing in our city ... We're all on board, and four years from now we want to be able to say, 'We did better.'"
4-year road map
The plan amounts to a four-year road map, City Attorney Kristyn Anderson told council members Friday, although she said that the rules — and enforcement power of the agreement — will likely remain in place for years beyond.
An "independent evaluator" will be hired and given a $1.5 million budget to oversee the plan's implementation.
City Public Safety Commissioner Cedric Alexander said some 27 full-time employees will be required in the effort.
The plan comes amid an ongoing federal investigation into similar concerns over the Police Department. That Department of Justice investigation could lead to a similar road map under the jurisdiction of federal courts.
If that anticipated federal consent decree should materialize, it would supersede the plan approved Friday, but wouldn't weaken it, officials have said.
Next steps
Because the plan was forged as a legal settlement, the next step might seem a bit odd, Anderson said: The state Human Rights Department will file a lawsuit against the city, making essentially the same allegations it made last year when it alleged a pattern of illegal racial discrimination by police.
The settlement agreement will be submitted to the Hennepin County judge assigned to the case, and that judge will have the power to accept and enforce the agreement.
One of the first steps toward implementing the plan will be hiring the independent evaluator in a process that will involve public meetings where community members can ask questions of finalists.
The position will be advertised within two weeks.
Both the city and the state must agree to whoever is selected. If they can't agree, each will take turns striking finalists from the field, with the order who striking decided "by lot," such as a coin toss, according to the agreement.
