Minneapolis City Council takes another step to ‘end the current policing system’

The Minneapolis City Council on Friday unanimously approved a resolution declaring it will create a “transformative new model” of policing in the city — a move spurred by last month’s death of George Floyd in police custody.

“We acknowledge that the current system is not reformable — that we would like to end the current policing system as we know it,” council member Alondra Cano said.

The resolution starts a yearlong process to create a new public safety model. All 12 City Council members are listed as co-authors.

Friday’s move comes days after council members announced their intent to disband the city’s police force in favor of a different model.

The resolution “describes the history of police violence and use of excessive force in our community,” council President Lisa Bender said.

“It talks about the financial liability we’ve experienced and related to those use of force,” Bender said.

The council on Friday also voted unanimously to terminate the local emergency order that had been declared because of protests and unrest in the days following Floyd’s death.

Minneapolis police Chief Medaria Arradondo said this week the department is withdrawing from contract negotiations with the police union, saying Floyd’s death has made him committed to “transformative change.”

A yearlong process

The council will start a yearlong process “of community engagement, research, and structural change to create a transformative new model for cultivating safety,” the resolution says.

It creates a “Future of Community Safety Work Group,” which will include staff from city departments including the offices of violence prevention and civil rights.

The work group has until July 24 to give the council preliminary recommendations for engaging with community members and experts who can help the city come up with the plan.

“The City Council will engage with every willing community member in Minneapolis, centering the voices of black people, American Indian people, people of color, immigrants, victims of harm, and other stakeholders who have been historically marginalized or under-served by our present system,” the resolution reads.

“Together, we will identify what safety looks like for everyone.”