George Floyd killing latest in string of police actions to stoke public anger in Minnesota
The Minneapolis police officer is seen in the video pressing his knee on the back of the handcuffed 46-year-old man. “Please, I can’t breathe,” George Floyd says.
After about six minutes on Monday evening, Floyd lay motionless, his eyes shut, his head against the pavement. He was declared dead at a hospital shortly afterward.
The city awoke Friday to find a police precinct set ablaze and parts of Minneapolis and St. Paul in ruins after days of protests, looting and vandalism stemming from the death of the unarmed black man.
Hours later, prosecutors announced the fired officer seen holding down Floyd — Derek Chauvin — had been arrested and charged with third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter.
It’s not the first time the long strained relationship between Minneapolis police and the community it is sworn to serve led to demonstrations.
Invoking the names of victims of fatal police encounters, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz said the smoldering ashes on the streets represented “decades and generations of pain, of anguish unheard.”
“So many other friends, brothers, sisters, mothers, fathers senselessly died on our streets,” he said. “Their voices went unheard and now generations of pain is manifesting itself in front of the world.”
Since 1999, Minneapolis has paid nearly $5 million in settlements stemming from 22 police misconduct incidents, according to APM Reports, an investigative and documentary division of American Public Media. Law enforcement officers were involved in 29 civilian deaths, according to APM Reports.
These are other law enforcement actions in Minnesota that stoked public anger:
Justine Ruszczyk
Justine Ruszczyk, 40, had relocated from her native Australia to Minneapolis to live with her fiancé.
One night in July 2017, she called police to report a possible sexual assault near her home.
Minneapolis Police Officer Mohamed Noor was in the passenger seat of his vehicle when he pulled his gun and fatally shot Ruszczyk outside the driver’s side door.
She was hit in the abdomen and died minutes later at the scene. Ruszczyk was months away from her wedding.
Noor was fired and charged with second-degree murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter. He testified at trial that his partner’s terrified expression and the sight of Ruszczyk with her hand raised jolted him into action.
Although he did not see a gun in the woman’s hand, Noor said he feared his partner might be shot.
Noor, a 33-year-old Somali-American, was convicted on of third-degree murder and manslaughter in 2019. In June, a Minnesota judge sentenced him to 12½ years in prison. Noor has appealed the conviction, CNN affiliate WCCO reported.
Ruszczyk’s family last year reached a $20 million settlement with the city. It was the biggest such settlement in Minneapolis history, according to a spokesman for Mayor Jacob Frey.
Philando Castile
Speaking of the long unvented anguish of the black community in his state, Walz said Friday: “Philando Castile silenced, unheard.”
Walz said one of the first people he called after watching video of Floyd’s death was Castile’s mother, Valerie.
“She said, first and foremost, seek justice, seek fairness and reach out and show kindness,” he said.
In the span of 40 seconds, a routine traffic stop in Minnesota ended with the death of Philando Castile in July 2016.
St. Anthony Officer Jeronimo Yanez pulled over Castile, 32, on a wide street that evening, according to police dashboard video showed at the officer’s trial one year later.
Yanez approached the white 1997 Oldsmobile and leaned in to speak through the driver’s window. Another officer approached but remained farther away on the passenger side.
Catile’s girlfriend, Diamond Reynolds, and her 4-year-old daughter were passengers.
Yanez asked for Castile’s driver’s license and insurance. Thirty seconds into the encounter, Castile told Yanez that he has a weapon.
The officer told Castile not to reach for the gun. They exchanged a few words. Seconds later, Yanez pulled his weapon and fired seven rapid shots into the car, striking Castile five times.
The child exited the car and the other officer picked her up. Reynolds began sharing a live video on Facebook.
Her Livestream captured Yanez yelling, “I told him not to reach for it!” and a bleeding Castile saying, “I wasn’t reaching.” Castile’s fully loaded gun was found in his shorts pocket after his death.
Castile’s death garnered widespread attention — and sparked nationwide protests over the use of force by police — after his girlfriend’s video went public.
Yanez was acquitted in June 2017 of one count of second-degree manslaughter and two counts of intentional discharge of a firearm that endangers safety. He testified that he feared for his life and believed Castile was pulling his own gun from his pocket. But prosecutors said Yanez was too quick to pull the trigger.
Members of the Castile family screamed profanities and cried when the verdict was announced.
The St. Anthony Police Department announced Yanez would no longer be with the police force.
Castile’s family reached a $3 million settlement with the city of St. Anthony in 2017.
Jamar Clark
Jamar Clark, a 24-year-old African American, was shot during a scuffle with white Minneapolis police officers in front of an apartment building during the early hours of November 15, 2015.
The shooting sparked weeks of protests, including an 18-day sit-in at a police station in the city’s north end. The Black Lives Matter movement and other groups drew national attention to the shooting.
The protests were largely peaceful, but turned violent when counter-protesters shot and injured activists occupying the police station. Three white men were arrested. The shooter, Allen “Lance” Scarsella, was convicted in 2017 of 12 felony counts, ranging from assault to rioting, and sentenced to 15 years in prison, WCCO reported. Two other men pleaded guilty to lesser charges and received sentence of probation and some jail time.
In 2016, a police internal investigation concluded the two officers involved in the Clark shooting did not violate department policies and would not face discipline.
The officers, Mark Ringgenberg and Dustin Schwarze, were cleared to leave desk duty and resume policing.
The US Justice Department declined to prosecute the officers, saying it found “insufficient evidence” for criminal civil rights charges. Minnesota’s Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) concluded the officers acted in self-defense and would not face criminal charges.
Schwarze shot Clark only after Ringgenberg scuffled with the young man, according to the BCA findings. Clark allegedly took control of the officer’s gun and Ringgenberg told Schwarze to open fire.
Clark died at a hospital one day after being shot.
Police reports and subsequent investigations said Clark had attacked his girlfriend the day of the shooting. Clark also interfered with paramedics attempting to transport her to the hospital and refused officers’ demands to remove his hands from his pockets, according to Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman, who announced charges Friday in connection with Floyd’s death.
Terence Franklin
On May 10, 2013, Terence Franklin, 22, was shot to death by members of a Minneapolis police SWAT team in the basement of a Minneapolis house, according to MPD 150, a collective of researchers, artists and activists who want the city police department dissolved.
Franklin was suspected of burglarizing a home, MPD 150 and WCCO reported.
Police said he was shot and killed after a struggling with SWAT officers and wounding two of them, the station reported.
In the basement, police said Franklyn broke away from an officer, grabbed a police submachine gun and shot two officers in the legs, MPD 150 reported. Two other officers fatally shot Franklyn.
The death led to months of protests, according to WCCO. A grand jury cleared the officers of any wrongdoing.
In 2014, Franklin’s family filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the city and the police, WCCO reported.
The family claimed the police’s actions that day were racially motivated and excessive, according to the station. The lawsuit said Franklin was shot after putting up his hands and surrendering.
In February, the Minneapolis City Council settled the federal lawsuit with Franklin’s family for $795,000, WCCO reported.
