MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) — The U.S. Department of Justice just announced a new initiative that would provide more resources for police departments, and they want Minneapolis to take part. The initiative was announced Tuesday at the U.S. District Court in Minneapolis.
It’s a $3 million grant to the International Association of Chiefs of Police, a nonprofit in northern Virginia that works on advancing policing.
Where Minneapolis comes into play is that the justice department thinks the city can benefit from the many bits of expertise this association has.
If Minneapolis accepts the partnership, it will get someone assigned to focus on the Minneapolis Police Department, effectively becoming a consultant.
Katie Sullivan, principal deputy assistant attorney general with the Department of Justice, explained what some of that work might look like.
“Making sure that use-of-force policies are not only in writing but are also being implemented, that you have good recruitment tools, retention tools, and — equally as important — you are working with the health and safety of law enforcement officers, their resiliency, and their safety,” Sullivan said.
This can’t pass with Chief Medaria Arradondo alone. He needs approval from the city to make it happen.
“As we’ve seen an unprecedented spike in violent crime in our city — over 400 people shot and wounded in Minneapolis, which is unconscionable, our homicides have more than doubled — we can not do this work alone,” Arradondo said.
Arradondo didn’t give a temperature on how Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey or the Minneapolis City Council feels about this, other than that he’s had conversations and he’s hopeful.
Source: CBS Minnesota