MINNEAPOLIS — Nearly four years after George Floyd was murdered by a Minneapolis police officer, the city and Minnesota Department of Human Rights (MDHR) officials announced they've chosen an independent body to monitor the police department's progress and changes it makes from race-based policing.
The move comes after the MDHR and city reached a court enforceable agreement early last year, requiring the city and Minneapolis Police Department (MPD) to make "transformational changes to address race-based policing."
The independent monitoring group, Effective Law Enforcement for All, was selected from 20 total organizations across the country. The group's mission is to help police and civic and community leaders come together to restructure law enforcement into a system that allows effective, fair and safe policing.
Community members were also invited to weigh in on monitoring group finalists in person and online.
“It is essential to have a highly qualified, independent monitor to ensure that the City and MPD center and prioritize a culture of continuous learning based on humanity and civil rights – Effective Law Enforcement for All is that team,” said MDHR Commissioner Rebecca Lucero.
Lucero went on to say that Minneapolis is the first city in the country to enter into both a state and federal consent decree to address "discriminatory policing practices." Effective Law Enforcement for All will head both monitoring processes.
“Effective Law Enforcement for All is the right team for this moment in history to provide the immediate support and oversight necessary for the coming years to achieve meaningful and lasting progress,” she said.
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey also commented in a statement from the city Friday, calling the announcement a "critical stop along the way" on the city's "roadmap for change."
“The ongoing work to reform and rebuild the Minneapolis Police Department will demand a wholesale commitment to collaboration, accountability, and transparency from across this local government," Frey said. "With the selection of an Independent Evaluator, we’re continuing to advance the years-long work to build a more just approach to safety in our city.”
To carry out these changes, MPD created a new Implementation Unit in 2023, comprised of both sworn officers and civilian staff such as data analysts and compliance experts. The unit works within the Constitutional Policing Bureau inside of the division of Community Trust, two newly created groups announced by Chief Brian O'Hara last August.
"The department is in the midst of a defining and historic moment," O'Hara said at the time of the announcement, "and I am confident with the appointments that I am announcing today, we will have the right people in the right positions to move the MPD out of the darkness and trauma of the last three years to a brighter future together."
Both the state and federal investigations found a pattern of racial discrimination within the department and specifically faulted training procedures. For example, the Minnesota Department of Human Rights found "deficient training and guidance for [MPD] officers, which exacerbates a pattern of discriminatory, race-based policing," while the DOJ investigation cited "persistent deficiencies in MPD's accountability systems, training, supervision, and officer wellness programs, which contribute to the violations of the Constitution and federal law."
Under the terms of the settlement agreement, MPD was ordered to bring in outside "community-based trainers" to enhance overall training policies.
Enter: Effective Law Enforcement for All.
Officials said the group's next steps are to be on the ground in Minneapolis, meeting with the community and police officers. The Minneapolis City Council has yet to vote on a contract, but the Independent Evaluator is expected to begin in March.
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