How the Death of George Floyd Sparked a National Debate on Police Department Reform:

Analysis of Reform Options for Minneapolis, Minnesota

By

Jonathan Coelho

______

A Policy Proposal Presented to the Faculty of the Department of Public Policy and Administration

CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY, BAKERSFIELD

In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree

MASTER OF PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION

Spring 2021

Copyright

By

Jonathan Coelho

2021

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Abstract...... vi Chapter 1: Introduction...... 1 Statement of Problem ...... 4 Purpose of Study ...... 5 Importance of Study ...... 6 Why Police Departments Get Disbanded ...... 8 The Importance of the Research Subjects ...... 9 Limitations of Study ...... 9 Assumptions...... 10 Scope of Limitations ...... 11 Chapter 2: Review of Literature...... 13 History of the Problem ...... 13 Theory ...... 13 Why Choke Holds and Neck Restraints Are being Banned ...... 16 Data ...... 18 What Other Cities Have Done Before ...... 20 Rationale for Disbandment and Rebuilding...... 20 The Process and Results ...... 22 Best Practices ...... 26 Chapter 3: Analyses of Options...... 33 Alternative 1 ...... 34 Alternative 2 ...... 38 Alternative 3 ...... 40 Where the City Stands Now On its Police Department...... 43 Chapter 4: Conclusion...... 46 Implementation Recommendations ...... 49 Research Recommendations ...... 51 The Trial and the Verdict ...... 53 Bibliography ...... 55

Abstract

The death of George Floyd has caused numerous protests not only in the City of Minneapolis but in numerous cities across the country due to the city’s police misconduct. The Minneapolis Police Department has been facing backlash for police related deaths over the years which includes Jamar Clark, Justine Damond, and George Floyd. Which have led to numerous protests across the city in 2020. The city has been facing an increase in crime such as robberies, murder, rape, and property crime. The City has also faced calls for disbanding, defunding and other demands for action and reform on its police department. The city needs to implement a policy that will reform the police department, improve police conduct, gain back public trust and support, and be able to reduce crime.

This paper will analyze three alternatives:1) disbanding the police department but contract with the Hennepin County Sheriff’s Department 2) disbanding the police department but rebuild a new department with new policies and reforms in order to change the culture; and 3) require the current police department to remain but implement new policy reforms. These alternatives are evaluated based on the following criteria and best practices: effectiveness in protecting public safety and reducing crime; ability to gain and build public trust and support; effectiveness in reducing the use of force; and effectiveness in improving overall police conduct and community relations.

Per this analysis, it is recommended that the City of Minneapolis keep the current department but include new policy reforms to ensure police accountability and public safety, promote diversity and inclusion to have the new department officers match the demographics of Minneapolis. Create a community collaborative with various community leaders and nonprofits to address the problems plaguing the city. As this will also allow community members to express their concerns with the department. The current department should create and host community events to gain public trust and support. It is also recommended that the city does not cut funding and have it consistent or increase if necessary, in order to properly equip the new department and equipment and to properly train the officers in de-escalation techniques. Finally, officers must be held accountable for the actions of their colleagues by requiring them to report any misconduct or intervene when a fellow officer uses excessive force. 1

Chapter 1

Introduction

In 2020, approximately 140 cities across the country have experienced numerous protests due to George Floyd's death on May 25th, 2020 (Taylor, 2020). Floyd died due to a cardiopulmonary arrest related to personal and various health issues that was caused by

Minneapolis officer Derek Chauvin kneeling on his neck. The official autopsy reported by the

Hennepin County Medical Examiner listed Floyd's death as a homicide and was contributed by

“cardiopulmonary arrest complicating law enforcement subdual, restraint, and neck compression” (Hennepin County, 2020). Floyd’s final moments were recorded on video showing

Chauvin kneeling on Floyd’s neck as he pleads for him to get off and repeatedly saying, "I can't breathe." Three other officers at the scene from MPD did nothing to intervene or remove their fellow officer, Chauvin, off Floyd's neck which also caused a lot of criticism (BBC, 2020).

Countless people from across the country, including other law enforcement officials, have since condemned the action of the officers.

Due to the emotional and devasting toll on the nation brought on by Floyd's death, along with the deaths of many other African-Americans in recent years due to claims of excessive force and police misconduct has led many protesters, activists, and politicians to demand a national reform of police departments and how they perform their duties and how they interact with the community. Many of these proposed reforms include banning no-knock warrants, ending qualified immunity, defunding police services, demilitarization, and abolishing police departments entirely. Some of these proposed policies have been met with praise and have seen success, while others have been met with negativity, failure and skepticism since some are believed to be unrealistic to implement or create change. 2

During the height of the protests, the City Council of Minneapolis unanimously voted to defund MPD and abolish the police department as well. The city council planned on creating a new public service department and reallocate previous police findings towards social services.

However, it has been reported that a majority of the city council members who have voted for this proposal have since then come to regret their decision. Some city council members have stated that their decision was open for interpretation, meant to be symbolic, or that they were caught up in the moment. Only one council member has stood by her decision to abolish the

Minneapolis Police Department (Holder, 2020).

The city council has recently agreed to provide $6.4 million for MPD as the department has gone down from 817 officers to 638 officers. The decline in police officers in Minneapolis is due to many officers resigning, retiring early, or taking an extended time of leave. Some of the reasons why officers are leaving or taking an extended leave is because of medical reasons. As many of them are dealing with issues related to PTSD. This is due to the protests that have occurred in Minneapolis. Many residents have complained to the city council about this problem as they noticed response times has decreased and crime has increased in 2020. The new funding is to allow the department to hire more police officers and to treat the officers on medical leave.

This reversal of budget cuts has also angered other residents because they argue that more police officers in a community do not reduce crime (Navratil, 2021).

Some of the reasons the original proposal will not go through are due to both political and legislative barriers. This includes lack of support from Mayor Jacob Frey, high disproval from Minneapolis residents, and prevention from the city's charter commission, which states that the police department cannot be disbanded or defunded (Holder, 2020). However, what if there were no barriers? what if the city of Minneapolis were able to disband its police department? 3

What options or policies could they implement to improve the department and gain back public trust? Or what if the city was forced to work with the current department to implement reform policies? What reform policies could they implement to improve police conduct and community relations?

A city government disbanding its police department is a controversial idea that seems unlikely to gain approval or even be implemented. Many people believe that it is not an effective way to reform police departments and that it makes things worse for many communities.

However, there have been cases where numerous cities across the country have disbanded their police departments with different results. The most prominent cities to disband their police departments and replace them with new police services strategies include Compton, California, back in 2000 and Camden, New Jersey in 2012. Both cities had various reasons why they disbanded their police departments.

When they did, both cities used different policies and reform strategies to improve policing in their communities. Over the years, both models have seen both negative and positive results. These include lower crime rates, more funding, fewer complaints against officers, and better community policing. However, they have also been met with some criticism from the public, such as excessive force being a problem, harassment becoming more frequent due to more officers being on patrol, and not addressing various issues affecting their communities.

The City of Compton disbanded the Compton Police Department in 2000 and requested the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department to provide police services for the city. The LASD accepted the city’s request to protect and serve the residents of Compton. Sheriff Lee Baca stated that the sheriff's department would be bringing in new changes such as updating the previous 4

department's outdated equipment, having more officers patrolling the streets, and increasing and promoting public safety intervention programs. These recent changes were a way to reduce crime, increase public safety, and build community trust in law enforcement along with cooperation (Garrison, 2020).

In 2012 in Camden, New Jersey, the city council decided to disband the police force and rebuild a new department. This would allow the city to change the culture of the department and improve police conduct. The new police department also created many policy changes on how police officers serve and protect their community and how they used force on the job. Many of these changes included using de-escalation tactics and using lethal force as a last result, increasing the number of officers on duty, holding officers accountable for the actions of their fellow officers by intervening when they see misconduct, and increase in the use of community policing such as hosting public events and becoming familiar with the residents of Camden by walking around neighborhoods (Everett, 2017).

Statement of Problem

The City of Minneapolis has been facing both political and social pressure from both city residents and outside interest groups due to George Floyd's death at the hands of officer Derek

Chauvin along with other controversies surrounding the MPD. Mainly because of accusations of excessive force that was used and the lack of intervention from his fellow officers. Many protesters and activists have been advocating that officers hold their fellow officers more accountable for their actions. The death of Floyd led to numerous protests in Minneapolis's that resulted in approximately 1,500 buildings and properties being damaged. This includes many local businesses being destroyed and the destruction of MPD’s third precinct. Damages to the 5

city will cost approximately $200 million to repair and rebuild the city’s infrastructure and will contribute to the State of Minnesota’s growing deficit (Berkel, 2020).

Due to the growing controversy and distrust of MPD, the Minneapolis city council has recently agreed to abolish the police department and replace it with a Department of Community

Safety and Violence Prevention. However, there is still a lot of confusion and a lack of consensus among the city council and residents on what this new department will do or how it will reform their current police department. Also, the city council lacks the authority to dismantle MPD or replace it with anything else. Suppose no political barriers were preventing the reshaping of

MPD. In that case, the city council will need to decide which policy proposal they will implement to reform MPD to gain back public trust, decrease crime, and improve police conduct.

Whatever policy the city chooses, it will need to improve its policies and culture within the department because it will need to rebuild trust and enhance the relationship between the officers and Minneapolis residents.

Purpose of Study

This paper will analyze three alternatives on how Minneapolis could reform its police department by looking at how two local governments have done it before with their police departments. This will include examination of two police departments who have experience similar demands and carried out major forms: Compton, California and Camden, New Jersey.

Both cities have sought ways to improve their police departments by disbanding their police departments. Another option would allow Minneapolis to keep their current department but implement reform policies to make improvements. This research will analyze the best practices of each proposed policy and what needs to be avoided. It will look at each policy's limitations, why they worked, and why they will not work. These policy proposals include abolishing the 6

police department and rebuild it with a new department with new reform policies or having the local sheriff’s department takeover or keep it the current department and have new reform policies.

The following three alternatives that will be analyzed include:

Alternative 1 - Disband the Minneapolis Police Department and contract with the

Hennepin County Sheriff’s Department to provide police services for the City of

Minneapolis;

Alternative 2 - Disband the Minneapolis Police Department, create a new police

department like what occurred in Camden, and rebuild from the ground up with recent

policy reforms; and,

Alternative 3 - Maintain the current Minneapolis Police Department but adopt new and

significant reforms.

These alternatives will be evaluated based on the following criteria’s and best practices and outcomes:

· Effectiveness in protecting public safety and reducing crime;

· Ability to gain and build public trust and support;

· Effectiveness in reducing the use of force;

· Effectiveness in improving overall police conduct and community relations.

Importance of Study

Police officers and law enforcement are essential to our society as law enforcement officers maintain order, keep the peace, and protect our local communities. They ensure that those who break the law are arrested or are prevented from doing more harm to society.

However, not everyone who is in law enforcement upholds these values. Those who do not 7

deserve to be officers unfortunately slip through the cracks. There have been a few police departments that have allowed their officers to use excessive force without consequences. There have been officers who have done nothing to address misconduct or prevent their fellow officers from using excessive force. This has caused many communities and residents across the country to either hate, distrust, or fear police officers, causing distrust in law enforcement and lack of cooperation, creating numerous problems.

Positive relations between law enforcement and communities across the country are essential to each other’s values and goals because they rely on cooperation and trust to reduce crime and maintain peace and order. Many residents and local leaders expect their local police officers to uphold the law, keep them safe, and represent their communities' values. Police officers rely on the community's cooperation and trust because they need cooperation to receive information from the public to address crime effectively. Therefore, it is essential to rebuild trust and cooperation between the two. Still, when that trust has been broken due to an incident, it causes a rift between the two and leads to more community issues that will remain unresolved

(Department of Justice, 2015).

This is what the Minneapolis Police Department is currently facing, and the City Council of Minneapolis wants to resolve it. To address these various issues and reform the police department, we must understand how we can improve its culture. This policy research is only addressing police departments that need reform and not every department in the country.

Because there are still great amounts of police departments and police officers that hold themselves to the highest standard and have gone above and beyond for their communities.

Specifically, we are discussing what has happened in Minneapolis as it has lost public trust, credibility, and integrity. This process is essential because Minneapolis residents need to feel that 8

they can rely on their police officers, and police officers need to gain back the community’s cooperation and trust.

Why Police Departments Get Disbanded

When discussing disbanding police departments, we need to address the common misconception associated with the term. When municipalities disband its local police department, they are not left without police services. What occurs next is that either the local sheriff departments or state police provide police services. Many local governments across the country often opt out to disband their local police departments and contract their local county sheriff's department to provide policing services.

There are three main reasons why cities disband their police departments. One reason is that many communities have small populations and tend to have five or seven police officers.

Many communities realize that it is at times unnecessary to not have a police department due to budgetary reasons as they cannot fully fund the department and it is more economically efficient to contract with their local sheriff’s department (King, 2009).

The second reason is due organizational failure, certain police departments fail to understand the environment or community they are serving. This includes how many municipalities go through rapid growth and that police departments cannot fully adapt to the growing demographic. This also includes when a community has a decrease in population which leaves the community with a police department that is unnecessary too large leading them to create cuts in the department or disband entirely.

The third reason for disbanding police departments is due to organizational limitations which leads many local governments to often prefer police services provided sheriff departments because leadership in the sheriff department and police department have different styles of 9

leadership, service, and policing. Both agencies also have different ways of being held accountable. The county sheriff is elected county-wide and if their performance is criticized then voters can elect a new sheriff, they hope will bring in new changes. Police chiefs are hired through the local administration level or city council and if their job performance is seen poorly then they will most likely be demoted or fired. The sheriff departments also tend to be more centralized (King, 2009).

The Importance of the Research Subjects

Both Compton and Camden are important examples on how two cities took radical approaches in reforming their police departments and their services by disbanding their police departments. For Compton LASD is being researched because it is the most documented case where a municipality contracted the local sheriff's department to provide policing services after disbanding their police department. Although this research is about Minneapolis and Hennepin

County, it is important, we study Compton is because it will give us an idea of the performance a sheriff's department can have on a local municipality. It should be stated that any problems or solutions LASD may have had in Compton will not provide us an exact idea on the type of performance HCSD may have in Minneapolis as we are studying different agencies in different parts of the country with different cultures and different social-economic issues.

Camden is important for this study and research because it has been praised by many for its reforms and the progress it has made since its inception in 2013. However, Camden’s new department has also faced criticism when it first started but has made improvements over the years. If MPD were to go this route, it can avoid the new department's mistakes or make improvements on certain ones. Just like Compton the City of Camden is in a different part of the country with different social-economic issues. 10

Limitations of Study

It should be noted that there are limitations and constraints to this study as the examples being used in this policy proposal are limited in scholarly sources. Only a few academic journals have been written and studied on and what has been done in Compton and Camden. While there virtually none about policing in Minneapolis or Hennepin County. Much of the research is provided by government agencies' raw data, interviews, news reports, and opinion pieces by university professors.

Research of local communities contracting sheriff departments is limited, with only a few journal articles dealing with the subject. This subject is limited in research because when police agencies get disbanded, many of the records get either lost or destroyed. Another problem is that many of the officers who worked with these disbanded departments were difficult to contact and the researchers could not conduct a proper survey or interviews.

As with any policy proposal, there is no one-size-fits-all, especially since we are using three cities with different demographics, including crime statistics, population, ethnic makeup, culture, politics, and other social-economic issues. What might work in Compton or Camden may not work in Minneapolis. However, public policy can be flexible or modified to fit the stakeholders and the community's needs and interests. While we may not propose a policy, we will most likely suggest or recommend certain changes that may work in Minneapolis and improve its police department.

Assumptions

Prior conducting this research, there were several assumptions of what the researcher assumed would be the results or findings of the study. One assumption is that the

Minneapolis Police Department would have a reputation that was similar to that of Compton and 11

Camden’s previous police departments which includes police misconduct and a dwindling police force. Another assumption is that the City of Minneapolis also had a similar reputation of

Compton and Camden, meaning that the city had similar poverty and crime rates. Other assumptions include that disbanding police departments were due mainly because of organizational and performance failures. Another assumption was that the leadership in MPD was unwilling to make necessary changes. Another assumption was that the success in Camden was a process that was effective and efficient right after the implementation of its new police department.

Scope of Limitations

Whatever policy alternative is proposed or implemented by the city council there were be limitations in the audit process. This is because there will be insufficient evidence or restrictions on the findings during the audit process. Limitations in findings include loss of documents or records from MPD. This is more prevalent in disbanded police department as records are often kept, stolen, or thrown away. This will not be a problem in Minneapolis if city officials take the proper precautions to keep and save police records and data.

Another limitation is that there would be a lack of a sufficient survey from police officials this is because when departments get disbanded there is a large influx of officers who resign or let go. When police officers leave, they most likely move to other communities and this becomes difficult to track them down because with lack of records it becomes difficult to locate them. This makes it almost impossible to conduct a survey on the issues and characteristics of the previous departments.

One scope of limitation is being able to determine or evaluate any drop or spike in crime

Minneapolis might experience. This is due to the fact many criminologists and theorists are 12

uncertain on what decreases crime. Camden and Compton both saw a decrease in crime when they disbanded their police departments and contracted new agencies, but evidence shows that this was national trend. Minneapolis has been seeing a decrease in crime as well and most likely this will continue. Although, the city has seen a spike in 2020 but this is most likely due to the protests across the city. Depending on which policy alternative is implemented an auditor may not be able to determine if that policy was the reason why crime declined.

13

Chapter 2

Literature Review

History of the Problem

The Minneapolis Police Department has a long history of racial injustice and police misconduct over the years. The history goes back to the 1930s and 1940s where it was known that police officers would abuse their power and authority by harassing minorities and raid their businesses and homes. Although these actions occurred years ago, there is no doubt, they have contributed to years of mistrust towards MPD's legacy especially towards race relations. As this is why many believe MPD treats African-Americans unfairly in the city due to historical issues on racist practices. Leaving many residents believing that African-Americans are being unfairly targeted and treated wrongly (Freedman, 2020).

Recently, many people have accused the department of using unnecessary force on several residents in Minneapolis. There have been well known individuals who have killed by police officers that has contributed to the controversy and distrust towards MPD. These include the shootings of Jamar Clark and Justine Damond, and various other Minneapolis residents that many argued that could have been prevented if the police were properly trained in de-escalation techniques or were trained on handling people with mental health issues.

Theory

One of the first know shootings that brought MPD into national news and notoriety was

Jamar Clark's death. On November 15th, 2015, the police responded to a fight that broke out during a celebration. When the paramedics and officers arrived at the scene, there was a confrontation between them and Clark, which led them to arrest him. There was a struggle, and it led one of the officers to shoot Clark, killing him. During the investigation, it was determined 14

that there were conflicting accounts of what happened. Many of the locals in the neighborhood claimed that Clark was not resisting arrest and was handcuffed. Others including the paramedics and other officers claim that Clark was resisting arrest and grabbed one of the officers’ gun

(Bonfiglio, 2017).

Regardless of what many of the witnesses saw or what many believed what happened,

Clark’s death contributed to the growing controversy and distrust towards MPD and the growing

Black Lives Matter movement. Clark's death led to numerous protests throughout Minneapolis, including an 18-day occupation in front of a police precinct. Other demonstrations included marches on highways, protests at government buildings, and outreaching to the public. The protest attracted the contributions of religious leaders and young Minneapolis residents hoping to make changes (Bonfiglio, 2017).

A second major incident that caused more controversy and notoriety for MPD was the death of Justine Damond. On July 15th, 2017, Damond made a 911 call reporting a possible sexual assault near her residence. Two officers arrived at the scene and reported there was no crime taking place. Moments later, both officers were startled by a loud sound, and that is when

Damond approached the passenger side of the vehicle (Smith, 2019). That is when one of the officers fired at Damond, killing her at the scene as he believed him, and his partner were being ambushed. Damond’s death also sparked outrage from her native country of Australia, where

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull demanded answers on what happened that night and has called the shooting inexplicable. Many other Australians were outraged, and many, including those in law enforcement, have criticized how American police officers are trained in their jobs (Cave &

Kwai, 2017). 15

Many activists and civic leaders in Minneapolis, including Mayor Betsy Hodges, began to demand MPD Chief Janee Harteau to resign from her position, believing she has mismanaged the department and cannot correctly perform her duties. In an interview, Mayor Hodges has stated, “I’ve lost confidence in the chief’s ability to lead us further” and that “it is clear that she has lost the confidence of the people of Minneapolis as well”. Harteau had agreed to resign from her position, stating that it would be best for the department and the city if there were new leadership for MPD (Smith, 2017).

Criticism of MPD is not limited from outside of the department but also from within as officers have complained about racial prejudice, they had experience. The current Chief of MPD,

Medaria Arrodondo sued the department back in 2007 along with four other African-American officers due to racial bias. The five officers sued the department because they believed they were being untreated fairly compared to their white colleagues (Williams, 2013). These complaints included being demoted for a misconduct accusation while a white colleague was promoted despite being caught for doing the same misconduct. One officer part of the lawsuit complained that he was transfer out of the homicide division for contradicting a superior officer’s statement regarding a suspect’s death. A white officer agreed with the plaintiff that their superior officer’s statement was false. However, unlike the plaintiff the white officer was not transferred out of the homicide division (Williams, 2007).

The officers also complained that they lost out in overtime pay and were overlooked for promotional opportunities. Arrodondo and another officer stated in the lawsuit that they were overlooked for an inspector position in the 4th precinct, and they argued that they were qualified for the job. The position was given to a white officer who had a history of misconduct and had been sued for various accusations, resulting in the city paying nearly $1 million in settlements 16

(Williams, 2007). Two years later in 2009 the lawsuit was settled out of court and the plaintiffs agreed to settlement. All five officers received monetary composition ranging from $40,000 to

$187,000. Unfortunately, promotions were not part of the settlement, but the lawyer and five plaintiffs were satisfied with the result as it forced the department to acknowledge the racial problems in the department and to make the necessary changes to improve the culture and prevent any toxic work-environment for future officers that they had to experience (Williams,

2009).

In five years, MPD has been heavily scrutinized both nationally and internationally on how the department’s officers have conducted their jobs. This includes how they are accused of using excessive force on African-Americans. Along with many high-profile deaths, many in the city and the country have been questioning the department’s ability to protect and serve

Minneapolis residents. Therefore, the city has erupted in protests, especially after Floyd's death, which has resulted in property damage because many of the residents have become frustrated with the lack of reforms, accountability, and justice.

Why Choke Holds and Neck Restraints Are being Banned

In the past 30 years numerous police departments across the country have been banning or removing choke holds and other forms of neck restraints from their use-of-force policies. This comes from years of complaints as these practices have caused numerous health problems and deaths. Not only because of the effects they had on suspects but also on officers taking part in the training, where there have been cases where some have had heart attacks. The Minneapolis

Police Department is one of the latest to ban this practice, but it was not until the death of Floyd that they finally removed it. Because of Floyd’s death more police departments across the country have also began banning choke holds and neck restraints from their policies. However, 17

despite numerous police departments banning this practice there have still been high-profiled deaths over the years either due to other forms of neck restraints or because officers continue to perform these practices (Kindy, Schaul, & Mellnik, 2020).

Many experts and police officer say this mostly occurs because of the lack of clarity in police departments policies and lack of proper training and lack of intervention from fellow officers. Many proponents of these bans have stated that if there is going to be any change or prevention from more choke holds or neck restraints police departments need to properly train their officers on other effective and nonlethal techniques and explicitly prohibited them by stating them in their policies (Kindy, Schaul, & Mellnik, 2020).

Another problem is that these bans are not really bans because they are simply not included in the use-of-force policies and are not explicitly prohibited. One solution that experts argue is that departments need to ban these practices by prohibiting them in their policies. They also argue that departments need to create a culture or reevaluate their policies of intervention.

This is because officers tend not to intervene either due to loyalty to their fellow officers or fear of retaliation. In one incident an officer in Buffalo intervene when she pulled an officer off a suspect when he was held in a choke hold. She was fired from the department and took her 14 years to receive her pension. This have prevented many officers from intervening as they fear the consequences (Evstatieva, & Mak, 2020).

MPD is taking the right step by banning choke holds and neck restraints and has even explicitly prohibits them in their use-of-force policies. The department also needs ensure that their officers hold each other accountable for their actions. This can include ensuring that their jobs will be protected and that they put public safety over loyalty to each other. MPD already has a duty to intervene policy but as the whole nation saw Chauvin’s colleagues did not intervene. 18

Some of the officers did express their concerns about the actions of Chauvin but did not anything about it. This is most likely MPD’s police culture does not reward them for intervening or prevent their fellow officers from criticizing or retaliating against them (Condon, & Richmond,

2020).

Another reason is most likely due that the intervening policy is a recently added policy from 2016 and has yet to be taken seriously. Another issue is that the officers at the scene were either part-time or rookies with little years of service on the force compared to Chauvin who had nearly 20 years of service. This most likely caused the officers too scared to speak out against someone who was their superior officer, mentor, or training officer (Condon, & Richmond,

2020).

Data

Another important aspect that needs to be addressed is Minneapolis's crime statistics and the use of force that MPD uses. Compared to the national and state average Minneapolis has one of the highest crime rates but still ranks better compared to other large cities. Overall, property crimes remain one of the highest forms of crime in the city. In 2019 the violent crime rate is 926 per 100,000 residents and 4,517 for every 100,000 residents and both have recently seen a rise this past year (Stebbins, 2019).

According to MPD's report in 2020, violent crime has increased significantly, and property crime had risen slightly. Violent crimes have increased by 23.2%, and property crimes saw an increase of 3.5%. The four-year average of homicides from 2016 to 2019 was 37; the city saw it rise to 73 in 2020, a 97% increase. Other forms of violent crimes also increased, such as robberies and aggravated assaults, increasing by 25%. In contrast, rapes have seen a decrease of - 19

16%, going down to 393 incidents from the four-year average of 468 reported incidents

(Minneapolis Crime, 2020).

In 2020 property crimes saw a slight increase as well as burglaries increased by 21%, thefts from motor vehicles rising by 53%, auto thefts by 73%, and arson by 65%. The only form of property crime that saw a decrease was larceny which had gone down by 2%. Gun violence has also increased in the city. Within a year, the number of shooting victims had gone up from

235 to 507 and shooting-related incidents up from 4115 to 8925. However, crime in Minneapolis has been decreasing overall since 1985, both in violent and property crimes (Minneapolis Crime,

2020). The spike in crime in 2020 may be related to the protests that occurred after Floyd's death which has also resulted in property damage.

Recently, MPD released a report from the past year that lists data on how police officers used force from 2008 to 2019. The data shows that the use-of-force has declined over the years as well. 2008 saw the highest use of firearm force with 12 incidents reported. The average use of firearms between 2009 and 2016 was 3.1. Firearm uses ranks low among MPD officers in types in use of force. The most used types of force by officers are bodily force, chemical irritant, and taser. These types of force have also seen a decrease in use over the years, with 2019 being a historic low for all types of force-use (Data Dashboards, 2019). MPD has been improving overall on how its police officers use force.

Since 2010 there have been eleven people in Minneapolis who police officers have killed.

Some of those killed were either unarmed or suffered from mental illness, resulting in the City of

Minneapolis making numerous settlement agreements to their surviving family members

(Severson, 2020). Many people have argued that their deaths could have been prevented if the police officers used the proper precautions such as de-escalation tactics. Many of the victims' 20

family members have recently sent their condolences to Floyd’s family and expressed their concerns about the continued lack of MPD accountability and their growing controversy surrounding their conduct.

What Other Cities Have Done Before

Over the years, there have been numerous communities that have disbanded their police departments for various reasons. Although disbanding police departments rarely happens and is unpopular. This process has allowed them to rebuild their police departments from the ground up by contracting the county sheriff's department or rebuilding the police force with new policies that also rebuilds their culture. One of the most well-known cases to disband its police force and contract with the local sheriff’s department was the City of Compton in California back in 2000 when they contracted LASD to provide police services. Another significant case occurred in

2012 when the City of Camden disbanded its police force but rebuilt it with a new department along with new policies that brought in reform.

Over the years, studies and research have looked at both cities and what has happened since they disbanded their police departments. They have also looked at indicators of what made them successful or what they need to do to improve. These reports and results also look at the crime rates, satisfaction from the residents, and the budget.

Rationale for Disbandment and Rebuilding

Many of the reports and findings go over the budgetary and social issues that both

Compton and Camden were facing and how they negatively affected their police departments' funding and their communities' well-being. Because both departments had to make personnel layoffs and cutbacks on their equipment. These cuts made their duties difficult in addressing criminal activity. These cities also struggled with a low local economy and high poverty rates 21

which caused their communities to see an increase in crime both in property and violent. Many people and organizations have classified both cities as “the most dangerous city in America” in their respective times of these reports, Compton being frequent in the 1990s and 2000s and

Camden being frequent in the 2000s and the 2010s. Unfortunately, both these cities had to cut their police force by almost half to save costs while crime continued to rise, especially homicides and other violent crimes.

In the late 1990’s Compton’s economy was severe to the point that the city had required the police department to fire twenty of their police officers and within in two years the city had cut the department’s budget from $18,251,000 to $12,034,000 before its disbandment (Corsaro &

Wilson, 2017). The City of Camden had to make drastic cuts to its police force as well due to its poor economy. In 2011, the city budget from the state's Transitional Aid was cut from $69 million to $10 million (Benson, 2020). These budget cuts forced the city to cut the total number of its police officers down from 338 to 175, along with salary cuts (Maciag, 2014). These budget cuts also included both departments to have inadequate equipment in which the police could not adequately address crime in their communities.

Compton had one the highest murder rates in the 1980s, and 1990's averaging between seventy and eighty homicides per year and close to 2,000 reported violent crimes a year.

However, the city saw a dramatic decrease to forty-five homicides and had a reported 1,525 violent crimes in 2000 when the city council disbanded its police force (Dowell, 2005). Camden itself has seen an average of forty-one murders between 2003 and 2011. While 2012 broke the city’s previous record with a total of sixty-seven murders, while the national average was 48

(Maciag, 2014). 22

Another major factor why these cities disbanded their police forces was police misconduct. Camden’s old police department was notorious as they were subjected to numerous lawsuits along with a long history of corruption. Many Camden’s police officers frequently planted evidence and drugs on innocent people, leading to an ACLU lawsuit. The ACLU's lawsuit was able to overturn 88 convictions, and the city was required to pay $3.5 million in damages (ACLU, 2020). These lawsuits showed that Camden's residents and city council have lost complete trust in CPD and CPD lost all its integrity and credibility. The corruption and misconduct of CPD’s officers was the final factor that made the city council to disband the department. As it would be best for the city and the residents that a new police department was created.

The Process and Results

With budget cuts, rising crime, and police misconduct, the city councils from Compton and Camden thought the only effective way to reform their police departments was to disband their police force and rebuild them. Both cities sought different ways of implementing this policy. Compton abolishes its police department in 2000 created a $12.3 million contract with

LASD to provide police services for the community. This contract was estimated to save the city’s law enforcement budget $7 million annually (Garrison, 2000). This past year the agreement between Compton and the LASD has grown its funding to $22 million (Cannick,

2020).

LASD Sheriff Baca agreed to form a contract with Compton and promised to bring down crime, bring in more officers in the city, and bring back peace and stability in Compton with improved police services. Sheriff Baca also provided the remaining 113 Compton police officers the opportunity to reapply for their jobs but will go through a vetting process to ensure that the 23

best police officers would be rehired. As they will continue to provide the best service for

Compton. When the LASD took over policing services, Compton grew its police personnel up to

175 sheriff’s employees with 77 deputies patrolling the streets, a significant increase from the previous 130 Compton police employees serving in 2000 (Dowell, 2005).

Once LASD took over Compton's police services, the sheriff’s department began to evaluate the previous department's police equipment they were using their final years. The department found out that many of the used equipment was deemed unfit for duty and service, including the headquarters. It took both the city and county to cover the expenses to repair or replace the equipment. The cost to repair the polices headquarters was $625,000. The following costs included $150,000 for vehicle upgrades, $223,000 for communication and equipment,

$12,000 was committed to weapon upgrades, and $76,000 was needed for computer upgrades.

The City of Compton was required to pay 72% of the costs while LASD covered the rest. In the final count, the City of Compton had to pay $781,920 of its budget to cover the expenses

(Corsaro, Wilson, 2017). Of course, these numbers are dated since they were from twenty years ago. Adjusted for inflation the cost to repair the headquarters would cost approximately

$961,371 and the costs to repair the equipment and upgrades would be $510,557. Totaling

Compton $1,293,291 in today’s money.

In 2013 Camden took a similar approach as the city council voted to disband its police force but decided it was best to rebuild it with a new department as it would change its culture.

The new police force will be known as the Camden County Police Department. Despite having county in its name, the new department was not connected or associated with the Camden

County Sheriff’s Department or Camden County. Still, it was programmed and designed to be opened to providing police services to other local governments in Camden County. As of 2021, 24

no other municipal in Camden County has contacted the new police department to provide police services to their communities.

The new department's main goals were to be affordable and address crime efficiently, effectively, and honorably. This new department is still heavily funded by state aid, and last year the total budget for the force cost $62 million. Like what happened in Compton, the previous department officers were able to reapply for their old positions. The new department wanted to rehire the best, and honest police officers they believe would best serve the community. When the new department was created, only 155 officers out of the previous 220 Camden officers reapplied for their old positions. In contrast, the others refused to work for the new department and resigned in protest (Mast, 2013).

With the new department Camden was able to grow its dwindling police force up to 411 officers. The reason why Camden was able to increase its police force was due to making budget cuts. Prior to disbandment the Camden’s average cost for a police officer counting salary and pension was $182,168. When the new department began the city cut down the cost to $99,605 per officer. With these new savings Camden’s new police department was able to hire more officers. With more police officer meant that Camden had 53 officers for every 10,000 residents, which is higher than the national average of 17 officers per 10,000 residents for cities with populations exceeding 50,000 (Maciag, 2015).

More officers patrolling Camden's streets meant that more citations and tickets were being written more frequently. The residents were most likely not accustomed to this with the previous department. This issue caused many residents to complain and accused the new police officers and department of harassment and excessive ticket writing. This type of ticket writing may be standard and normal in many communities with an average size police force. However, it 25

now seems absurd and excessive in Camden because it is something the residents were not used to, and it was suddenly sprung onto them. It is something they must get accustomed with over time (Maciag, 2015).

Due to many complaints and the unintended consequences of these tickets, Chief J. Scott

Thomson ordered the new department to stop writing tickets and just give out simple warnings.

This new policy was implemented because Chief Thomson argued that most of the residents lived below the poverty line as the city's average income was $13,000. Chief Thomson argued by stating giving someone a $250 ticket will have a ripple effect not only on them or their families but also on the community. By making the standard of living in the city worse since many residents are struggling to pay their bills or unable to provide for their families. Chief Thomson believes that the department's purpose is to protect and serve Camden's people and not make their lives any more difficult (Goldstein, 2017).

Other reforms and policies from Camden include that hold officers accountable for their fellow officers' actions. This means that an officer must intervene or report if they see one of their fellow officers violating the department's policies, laws, or any other form of misconduct. If they do not, then they are just as guilty if they are caught and will face similar consequences.

Another significant reform change included using de-escalation techniques as a primary tool and using lethal force as a last resort.

An example of this is how officers cannot draw their guns on a person holding a knife or has apparent mental health issues they must instead back off or take cover for safety and wait for backup. Camden police officers are now required to step back and reason with the person or talk about something simple to calm them down. One incident occurred in 2015 included when a suspect was wielding a knife and a group of officers formed a barrier around the suspect. This 26

allowed the officers to ensure that the suspect was not a threat to anyone else or himself, they just walked with him until he was ready to surrender. (Everett, 2017).

Between 2013 and 2017 Camden police officer have only killed two suspects one was because the suspect shot first and the other had a replica gun (Everett, 2017). The new department also changed the culture by removing the warrior or rough guy mindset by requiring new recruits and veteran officers to take a step back, wait for back up, and de-escalate the situation instead of going right into action. This was changed because Chief Thomson reevaluated the departments leadership and training exercises were aligned to the department’s goals and culture. Chief also ensured that new recruits were proper trained by their mentors to have a guardian mindset (Everett, 2017).

Another significant policy change included promoting community policing. Officers are now required and encouraged to introduce themselves to community members, and the new department now hosts numerous community events. Officers now walk around the community, which allows them to get to know the residents of Camden. This is an essential step for the new department to gain back the public's trust and cooperation. As it allows members of law enforcement and members of the community interact with each other. This is because of the corruption and misconduct associated with the previous department, which had destroyed the public’s trust in them (Holder, 2020)

Best Practices

To determine which policy proposal will best benefit Minneapolis in reforming its police department. We will need to look at both cities' progress and their new departments since their cities disbanded their previous police departments. Indicators will help evaluate which policy 27

alternative will be successful and beneficial in the long run: community satisfaction, better police conduct, and crime statistics.

Since its inception in 2013, Camden has dramatically decreased overall crimes, including homicide, robberies, and other violent crimes. In 2012 the city of Camden had a reported 5,999 crimes, and in 2019 the city reported 3,267 crimes, a 41% decrease. The number of police officers also nearly doubled, reaching almost 400 officers working in the city (Rodas, 2020). The number of fatal police shootings has decreased as well. Between 2014 and 2017, there have only been three fatal police shootings (Everett, 2017). Complaints against the Camden police officers have decreased as well, declining by 95% (Holder, 2020). Dropping from 65 in 2012 to only 3 complaints in 2019 (Doubek, 2020).

However, many residents are still not fully satisfied with the new police department as social-economic issues remain. With new funding and resources to hire new officers, the city had to recruit members outside the community. This has caused distrust with many community members as they feel that these recruits cannot properly serve and protect the city and residents if they are not from the community. Camden’s population has a large African-American and Latino population, and the previous police department's demographics were closely aligned with

Camden's population.

Many of the new officers come from wealthier and whiter neighborhoods outside of

Camden, which is why many residents believe this creates a division in the city because they argue that many new officers do not understand the residents or the city's problems (Maciag,

2014). Many argue that it is important to have a police force that represents the community’s demographics and is from the community because how can you protect and serve the community if you are from outside the community? 28

The examples used in Camden's new police departments have also been met with controversy. Some argue that the new department is being misused or misrepresented by many on how it improved police conduct and progress in the city. Some argue that Camden’s new police department may have solved a few problems but also brought several unintended consequences such as over-policing, since the new department began implementing the broken- windows theory. The broken-windows theory is the belief that if officers were to take smaller offenses or smaller criminal acts more seriously it would prevent more serious crimes from being committed.

New York City was the first to implement this policy and in the 1990’s the city saw a decrease in crime. However, many reviews and reports have found that crime went down as the economy improved and not because of over-policing. This was a nationwide trend as almost all major cities in the country saw a decrease in crime as well, even those who did not implement the broken-windows theory (Fuchs, 2013). This is what the new department in Camden began implementing and the city saw the number of citations, tickets, and summonses for small offenses dramatically increasing.

Many argue that many individuals who use Camden as an example of police reform are not properly looking at crime statistics and not looking at other factors which includes community activism and the historical context of has been happening in the country. In the past twenty years crime in the United States has drastically decreased. Cities such as New York and

Los Angeles were averaging 2,000 murders a year in the 1990’s are now seeing those numbers drop down to the triple digits. Cities that were seeing murder rates in the triple digits are now seeing them decrease to the double digits (Fuchs, 2013). 29

Many researchers, criminologists, and theorists have yet reached a consensus on why crime has decreased in recent years. However, two popular theories have the most support. The first is that it is due to police officers' increase in funding for technology and equipment, which has increased their response time and effectiveness on addressing crime. The second popular theory is that the economy improved, which has decreased the unemployment rate, lowered the poverty rate, and the shift on focusing on social-economic issues plaguing many communities instead of increasing punishment. Other popular theories that many argue include the legalization of abortion, the modifications of the U.S response to the crack epidemic, and a decrease in lead emissions (Fuchs, 2013).

One popular theory that many activists and community leaders argue for in police reform is community activism. When Camden implemented its new department, it had its own problems as well and unintended consequences. As stated before, the new department was criticized for over-policing due to the increase of citations and tickets being written. It was not until the residents of Camden began to complain which led the police chief to change many of the policies. Many residents in Camden also complained about the over-use of police force and the concern of police officers' accountability. This also led the new department to make changes in other policies regarding the use-of-force and duty of officers to intervene when other officers misuse their force. This was a process that occurred several years after the new department’s implementation (Danley, 2020).

Another issue CCPD was facing was a high turnover rate among new recruits in the department. A few years after its implementation, CCPD was facing a high turnover rate among its officers, as, in 2015, over 120 officers left their position. One of the leading causes for officers leaving CCPD is that their training at the police academy did not prepare them for 30

Camden's dangerous streets or the long-stressful hours. Others also cited job violations were another reason why many of them resigned because they were being disciplined frequently for not following protocol such as correctly saluting their superior officers and not correctly wearing their uniforms (Boren, Woods, 2015).

During the first years of LASD police services, Compton continued to see homicides fluctuate but saw a dramatic increase starting in 2005, with 42 homicides being reported

(Garvey, 2005). However, the murder rates continue to decline dramatically, down to 22 murders

(Macrotrends, 2018). Seventeen years after LASD took over, property crime rates dropped dramatically by 39%. Spending costs for police services also decreased by 34% (Corsaro,

Wilson, 2017). Research also found that since LASD took over Compton's police services, three areas focused on and improved over the years, contributing to Compton's positive results. These three areas include:

1. technical resource improvements.

2. an added emphasis on local problem solving and crime prevention; and

3. a commitment to inter-agency partnerships.

Despite crime going down in the city, many of Compton's residents have expressed opposing views towards the sheriff’s deputies and the entire LASD. Over the years, there have been numerous reports, complaints, and cases where deputies have used excessive force on

Compton residents. Many residents want the deputies to be held accountable for their actions.

They have also complained about how LASD has been operating Compton as a training site for newly recruited deputies and relocating them across Los Angeles County. What they want are more deputies in Compton (Cannick, 2020). 31

Complaints about LASD are not limited within Compton but across the entire Los

Angeles County. There have been activists, civic leaders, and groups complaining about misconduct about LASD deputies citing the death of Andres Guardado. There have been growing complaints about how the deputies have been mistreating protesters and journalists at many Black Lives Matter protests within the county. Many residents and county officials have also made numerous calls that LASD Sheriff Alex Villanueva needs to resign, arguing he has weak leadership and poor management skills and the lack of proper response to address these concerns within his department.

One problem Compton is having with LASD is that many deputies are part of a secret subgroup, clique, or a gang within the department. This issue has become more frequent throughout the department in all of Los Angeles County with at least 18 gangs being documented and has been occurring for the past 50 years. A recent study believes that there are more of these deputy gangs in LASD but cannot determine that exact number due to secrecy and intimidation.

Like street gangs, these deputy gangs within LASD have their own signature tattoos, symbols, and initiation rituals. A recent report found out that many of these gangs within LASD encourage their fellow deputies to partake in a culture of fear and violence. This includes encouraging new deputies to act aggressively and constantly use force on residents and use hostility towards minority groups, and opposition to any policing reforms including community policing

(Kennedy, 2021).

This study also found that subgroups in sheriff departments was limited to LASD and could not find any evidence of any other sheriff departments in the country with gang like characteristics. This is good because this indicates that HCSD does not have this problem or negative reputation. Although, it should be noted that the study on LASD was conducted by 32

Loyola Law School which is located in Los Angeles. This is important to understand because the samples, and evidence they used were convenient to them due to their location in order to determine the same findings or study on HCSD it would be best if a law school in Hennepin

County did a similar study (Kennedy, 2021).

Many of Compton’s residents have expressed their concerns about these deputy gangs patrolling their streets, including Mayor Aja Brown. Mayor Brown filed a complaint against

LASD when she was pulled over and seven to nine deputies arrived at the scene. She claims that the deputies terrorized her and her family as they searched for drugs in her vehicle. Another incident occurred when community leader Derrick Cooper and business owner Jermelle

Henderson were arrested or detained in Compton by the deputies simply because they fitted the description of someone they were looking for or simply because it is what they do in Compton.

Sheriff Villanueva has recently denied these accusations about his deputies but has agreed to conduct an independent investigation. Leaving many residents in Compton and everywhere, becoming hopeless if change or reform will ever occur for policing serves in their community

(Bartley, & Granda, 2020).

33

Chapter 3

Analysis of Options

This study will analyze the three alternatives and determine the best policy that would best serve the City of Minneapolis and reform its police department. This process will also conduct a cross-benefit analysis on the alternatives and best practices. Each analysis will be evaluated its potential and limitation. This part will determine which alternative will be proposed, which includes.

Alternative 1 - Disband the Minneapolis Police Department and contract with the

Hennepin County Sheriff’s Department to provide police services for the City of

Minneapolis.

Alternative 2 - Disband the Minneapolis Police Department, create a new police

department, and rebuild from the ground up with new policy reforms.

Alternative 3 - Maintain the current Minneapolis Police Department but adopt new and

significant reforms.

The purpose of the next step is to help the City Council of Minneapolis evaluate four components that will help determine the best alternative that should be implemented in reforming MPD. Each component will look at where each alternative will succeed and where it falls short. The four components will ensure that the best alternative will improve MPD culture and improve police and community relations.

• Effectiveness in protecting public safety and reducing crime;

• Ability to gain and build public trust and support;

• Effectiveness in reducing the use of force;

• Effectiveness in improving overall police conduct and community relations 34

Alternative 1

Effectiveness in protecting public safety and reducing crime;

Overall, across the country crime has been decreasing along in Minneapolis and one can assume the same for Hennepin County and this trend will most likely continue. Especially, now that HCSD has created a mental health position for their jails. Recently this past year the county commission provided more funding for the department to fill in a social worker position and a nurse practitioner position to provide mental care for those in the county jails. This comes after an inmate was found unresponsive in his cell from a suicide attempt (Gray, 2020). This is important because the sheriff’s department is taking the proper steps to ensure that inmates and the public are receiving the proper care to ensure they do not become repeat offenders or harm themselves.

These new positions also shows that the county has the potential and desire to create more positions and expand its services to more inmates. This may be a small step, but it is progress in the right direction that can lead deputies to properly trained on mental health issues.

However, the main constraint with HCSD is that there is a lack of annual reports of crime and use of force statistics for the county. This is something that Minneapolis does annually and if

Hennepin County does this it will allow the public to see if crime is increasing or decreasing and how often deputies use force.

Ability to gain and build public trust and support;

It is difficult to determine if HCSD will be able to gain back public trust and support due to lack of findings and research on the department’s interactions with the public. Factors that will help determine this component is a program evaluation and more reports and data being released.

However, on the department does have several programs that promote community engagement 35

and civilian action. These programs include a citizen academy where residents in Hennepin

County can get firsthand experience on law enforcement by taking courses, witness demonstrations, and taking tours for free. HCSD also has a community advisory board where civic leaders and residents meet and collaborate with the sheriff’s department on various issues and provide feedback on their performances (Community involvement, n.d). This gives county residents a voice.

HCSD also hosts an annual event called National Night Out where the sheriff’s department engages with the public by hosting numerous events across the county. This allows the department and the community to build trust and respect for each other. The department has even created a Community Outreach Division. This division serves the departments goals of community policing by building community trust. One reason why this division works is because it is able to engage with many of the diverse communities in the county. This is because deputies are trained to be culturally sensitive, attending multicultural events, and learning the numerous languages that are spoken by the county’s diverse residents (Community involvement, n.d).

If this alternative is implemented, it would allow the sheriff’s department to expand their programs and their services across Minneapolis and allow residents to become more active with law enforcement activities and have their voices and concerns heard. It will also have law enforcement officials to understand the residents better. The sheriff’s department has experience with community policing and building community relations. These types of activities will allow

HCSD to work with the residents and understand the city’s diverse communities and gain back their trust and cooperation. This may take time, but it is a right step to improve overall relations among the residents and law enforcement officials (Community involvement, n.d). 36

Effectiveness in reducing the use of force;

Due to a few suicide attempts in their county jails, the sheriff’s department have taken a stronger approach in addressing the importance of mental health issues that many perpetrators and residents in their jails and county are dealing with every day (Gray, 2020). However, there have been no reports on how deputies will be able handle suspects with obvious mental health issues. Such as if they will be properly trained, or any changes in their use of force policy will occur.

However, the department has acknowledged that addressing mental health is important.

This can lead the department to review and revise their training policies and use-of-force policies and train their deputies to more efficient in dealing with suspects with obvious mental health problems and decrease lethal force or bodily harm. This can occur since HCSD does has been active in cooperating and listening to the residents in the county.

Effectiveness in improving overall police conduct and community relations;

HCSD has been using numerous outreach and volunteer programs throughout that county. One major program they have is aimed at reducing opioid addiction and deaths in the county. If HCSD were to take over it would be able to expand these programs throughout the city. The department will be able to gain more public participation and trust with their police- related activities that promote community engagement.

Since the department has a community advisory board it will allow the residents of

Minneapolis to become vocal and engaged in these meetings where they discuss their concerns on how the deputies perform their duties. Minneapolis has had a few officers who received numerous complaints over the years that have resulted in settlements but kept their job or were 37

not reprimanded. This community advisory board will finally allow residents to change that problem.

If alternative 1 is implemented the city and county will have to address the issue of the size of Minneapolis. Minneapolis is a large city with a population of 429,606 as of 2019 and is the largest city in Minnesota. A concern for this alternative would be a city this size will take a toll on the county’s budget along with the time for the transition of power. Communities that contract sheriff departments tend to smaller and have populations ranging from the hundreds to the 100,000. This makes the transition of power easier and cost effective as it is easier for sheriff department to evaluate the police officers quickly and effectively.

Most communities that disband their police departments and contract their sheriff departments tend to have a small police department with a few dozen officer. Minneapolis had an average of 800 officers prior to 2020. HCSD would have to evaluate and interview that many officers to determine if they should remain on the force which can take a long time for HCSD to conduct. HCSD would also have to address the problem of MPD decreasing force and will have to increase that number back to the average. This could be a problem because the county will have to hire more deputies to patrol Minneapolis.

The officers do decide to remain and transfer over to HCSD can cause financial issues with the county’s budget because that means that the county will have to cover the pay checks, medical expenses, retirement benefits, and any equipment upgrades the county has to cover.

Even if the City of Minneapolis helps cover the costs it can still become a burden for the county as their expenses will increase dramatically without any new revenue. This can lead the county to make drastic decision either by raising taxes, making cuts to other departments, or make cuts to the deputies’ benefits. 38

Alternative 2

Effectiveness in protecting public safety and reducing crime;

This alternative will allow the new department to promote public safety and reduce crime as it will increase the number of police officers in the streets. Since the department has lost 200 officers and will be most likely to lose more if the current department is disbanded which has occurred in the past in Compton and Camden. This is because officer tend to quit or resign in protest when their departments get disbanded. To address this potential problem the department will need more funding, which it has received from the city this past year.

The City of Minneapolis has agreed to increase funding ensure enough officers will be hired to ensure public safety. Prior the force decrease Minneapolis has seen a trend of decreasing crime and with the recent spike it is important to ensure the new department has the necessary number of police officers on duty and the necessary equipment and technology.

Ability to gain and build public trust and support;

Although this will not happen overnight and will take time the new department will be able to gain back public trust and support. As more community policing procedures will allow officers to interact more with the residents of Minneapolis. The new department can create more community related organizations and events to get the residents more engaged and rebuild their relation and improve their cooperation.

The new department can also include the community advisory board that will allow residents and community leaders to work closely with law enforcement officials. As we saw with

Camden’s police department the progress was made because of community activism and the new department listening and make the necessary changes to ensure the public’s trust and support and will take time to ensure its effectiveness. 39

Effectiveness in reducing the use of force;

With a new department, changes from the previous use of force policy will also change just like what happened in Camden. This means that the department will have to evaluate the previous departments policies and change what is necessary and implement more de-escalation techniques and forbid neck restraints and chokeholds from being used, reducing police-related shootings and deaths. However, this can be limited because Minneapolis is a larger city with close to half a million residents while Camden is barely close to 80,000 residents. Obviously,

Minneapolis has a larger police force, and this can be a problem as it will be difficult to ensure all current and new police officers are properly trained with the new departments new regulations and policies.

Effectiveness in improving overall police conduct and community relations;

The new department will also create a culture of accountability as new policies will promote and encourage officers to intervene or report when a fellow officer abuses their power or authority. Just like in Camden, this new department will rebuild from the ground up starting by the previous leadership. The police chief and city council will have to evaluate all officers who will be willing to stay onto the next department being built. This will ensure city officials will prevent any officer with previous misconduct accusations from joining the new police department. Since the new department will have to employ a new batch of recruits this will make it easier to ensure that they follow the new departments policies and aligned with the new culture. The new department should follow what Camden did and train the officers to have a guardian mindset instead of a warrior mindset.

The new department can also train the new officers by encouraging them to intervene when one of their colleagues abuses their power or uses excessive force. This will also show that 40

the new department values accountability and that they hold themselves to a higher standard. The residents of Minneapolis will be able to see that more officers will be willing to intervene when another goes too far thus regaining their trust and confidence. Although, the previous department had a policy of intervention it was difficult to implement since officers were unwilling to intervene. This is due to a few reasons such as being new that it was difficult to force a large department to follow it, young officers and recruits were unwilling to speak out against a veteran officer.

Alternative 3

Effectiveness in protecting public safety and reducing crime;

The current department has been able to address crime in the city efficiently and has ensure dpublic safety effectively. Especially, since crime has been declining year after year, but there is always room for improvement. The city still has a high crime rate compared to national average, but Minneapolis is not considered to be one of the country’s most dangerous city. To ensure that crime continues to decline, and officers can perform their jobs effectively the city will need to increase the budget to have more access to technology will help the department just like in Camden, to ensure that the officers are properly trained on how they conduct their duties, and to allow them to employ more officers on the force to get back the regular number cops on the streets.

Ability to gain and build public trust and support;

The current department will likely have a hard time gaining back most of the residents support due to police-related shootings and deaths from the past decade. However, most of the residents still want to keep the current department but would like to see changes in how the officers interact with the community and how they conduct their services. Even with new 41

policies, it will be a while until the department can fully gain back the cities trust and support.

However, within the past progress has been made especially since Chief Arradondo acknowledging the departments past mistakes and issues with the culture within. Chief

Arradondo has made recent policies changes this past year that he and many others hope will improve police conduct and community relations.

As of now it is difficult to determine if the current department has any similar programs or hosts events that HCSD has or promotes. If not, then this is something the current department can implement by creating a community advisory board or begin hosting more community events. The current department can also make improvements by training current officers and requiring recruits to be able to speak or understanding the language that are commonly spoken in city. The current department can also attend many multicultural events that are held throughout the city. These are important because by promoting cooperation and cultural sensitivity, officers will have a better understanding of the city’s residents and will be able to gain their trust and support.

Effectiveness in reducing the use of force;

The current department has been using force less and less every year and police related shootings and use of force have been declining as well. This is one of the few things the department does not really need reform in but there can be improvements. This includes how officers interact with people with mental health issues and use force as a last result, which could have prevented certain deaths in the past. Chief Arrodondo has acknowledged the problems with the department with past incidents and has made changes in the departments use-of-force policies. 42

It would best serve the department and city if the police officers were trained on de- escalation techniques, especially on how to handle those with mental illness. Although the department has done well in decreasing their use of lethal force over the years and the city continues to see a decrease in crime, despite the spike in 2020. However, there is always room for improvement and the department’s officers could still be trained in using proper techniques that Camden have been using which includes calming down suspects in certain situations. As it can save lives.

Effectiveness in improving overall police conduct and community relations;

The current department is not corrupt or have a high reported number of misconducts like

Camden was facing or what Compton was facing financially. However, police-related shootings seem to be a major issue as it has caused distrust in their ability to keep the residents safe.

Fortunately, a few of these police-related deaths have been condemned by the leadership in

MPD. The department have also fired these officers and openly spoken out against them in interviews and in court. Another major problem is how Chauvin’s fellow officers did not intervene when he had his knee on Floyd's neck. However, this why the current department needs to have policy reforms to improve its culture that promote accountability.

Recently, Chief Arradondo has implemented a policy on how officer’s report de- escalation situations. The policy requires officers to write, document, and report to supervisors on any de-escalation efforts they used while on duty regardless if they used force. This includes if they used any bodily harm, if they used any chemical restraints, if medical aid was required, or if any physical contact was used and explain why they felt the need to use these techniques and what were the outcomes of their actions. The purpose of this policy is to build trust and 43

legitimacy by providing proper an accurate date on the use of force and holding officers accountable for their actions (Forliti, 2020).

Where the City Stands Now On its Police Department

Due to legal and political challenges in implementing the city council’s previous commitment to disband the police department and replace it with a brand-new entity their plans have fallen short, and many members of the city council have backtracked on their commitment.

Despite another promise to reallocate the police departments funding the city council has recently voted to increase the police departments budget in order to address the departments dwindling force (Herndon, 2020). This has led many local activists and organizations in

Minneapolis to act themselves in order to create true reform. This past year a coalition of nonprofits and organizations have formed a collaborative that aims to get a proposed measure on the ballot in the upcoming fall election of 2021 called Yes 4 Minneapolis. For the measure to appear on the ballot Yes 4 Minneapolis is trying to secure 20,000 verified signatures (Du, &

Navratil, 2021).

This proposed measure aims to change Minneapolis City Charter specifically section 7.3 by removing references and phrasing indicating the city’s reliance on police officers, the department, and how the chief is appointed. The proposed measure will instead replace the department it with The Department of Public Safety. This will allow community activists, organizations, and cooperation with the city council to properly reform and evaluate the city’s police department and decide the future of policing. This process and measure will make it easier for the city to reform the department with little or no legal challenges from the City Charter. The signatures were delivered to the city clerk office and if enough signatures are verified then it will 44

be on the ballot on November 2nd, 2021 if not then they measure will have ten more days to provide more signatures (Our Coalition, 2021).

The debate of defunding or reduction of the departments funding or personnel force is highly debated among Minneapolis’s residents. This indicates that even if Yes 4 Minneapolis reaches the ballots it seems unsure on how residents will vote on the measure. However, it seems a slight majority of residents still support the current police department but do support reforms and changes. Last August in 2020 the Star Tribune conducted a survey about these issues related to the department.

The pollsters asked two questions the first question was “Do you think Minneapolis should or should not redirect some funding from the police department to social services, such as mental health, drug treatment or violence prevention programs?” The results found that 73% of residents agreed that they should and 24% argued they should not. The same poll was then separated towards the African-American community of the city. The results were similar to the city’s overall response as 76% argued that they should 19% argued they should not (Roper,

2020).

The second question was “Do you think Minneapolis should or should not reduce the size of its police force?” The results found that 40% of residents supported these cuts will 44% opposed the cuts and 16% were unsure. The results were similar to the city’s African-American community response. The results showed that 35% agreed with the cuts while 50% disagreed with the cuts and the remaining 15% were unsure. Both polls show that the results of the measure could go anyway depending on how undecided voters decide on election day. This indicates a lot of uncertainty if community activists will be able to change the City Charter or make any changes (Roper, 2020). 45

Yes 4 Minneapolis tends to cooperate with the city council to ensure that theirs goals do not conflict with each other. For the most part the measure tends to change the name of the department and how the department is influenced and reformed. However, they have yet to confirm exactly how they plan on reforming the department, how it will change its culture, how it will reform its policies, or even they plan on disbanding the department and rebuild it with a new one.

Obviously, these are things that cannot happen overnight but takes time, but they do need to be clearer on their goals and agendas. Especially, since a slight majority of residents are against cuts in the departments size while a majority support redirecting the departments funding to other services. The city seems to support relocating the departments funding to other services but at the same time are against the decrease in police officers in their streets. This can lead to a lot of conflict depending how exactly Yes 4 Minneapolis plans on reforming the police department. Disbanding the department can cause a lot of issue as well since residents want to keep the department.

46

Chapter 4

Conclusion

The Minneapolis Police Department has been growing in controversy on how its police officers conduct their duties and it services along with the lack of accountability for police misconduct. These include recent shootings of residents such as Jamar Clark and Justine

Damond. One major concern growing among residents and officers within the department is how

MPD unfairly treats African Americans from within and outside the department. Many residents have complained that the department uses unnecessary and excessive force on the African-

American community, and several officers within the department have complained about being treated unfairly compared to their white colleagues. Many argue that of those killed by MPD in the last ten years would still be alive today if the officers took the proper precautions or had the proper training to handle the situations.

The growing distrust and dislike towards MPD reached its breaking point on May 25th,

2020 when George Floyd died at MPD officer Derek Chauvin's hands as the officer knelt on

Floyd’s neck. This incident was recorded and had an emotional effect on millions of Americans who watched it. This led to a massive Black Lives Matter protests in Minneapolis and various other towns and cities across the country. In what was meant to be a peaceful protest in

Minneapolis turned chaotic. Many demonstrations in the city led to violence, rioting, looting, and property destruction, including a police precinct, resulting in numerous arrests and millions of dollars in damages.

Currently, the Minneapolis City Council is looking at ways to improve MPD and the goals are to improve the department's culture, gain back the public's trust, and ensure public safety. In the summer of 2020, the city council voted to both defund and dismantle MPD and 47

replace it with a Department of Public Safety and Violence Prevention and reallocate funding to other services. However, this proposal has been rejected by the mayor, the police chief, the city council charter commission, and a majority of Minneapolis residents as being too idealistic and not exactly clear on what the new department was supposed to do or how exactly it was an improvement from MPD. Many of city council members have since backtracked on what they agreed to do and have recently voted to allow more funding for MPD due to numerous officers resigning in less than a year and in hopes of recruiting more officers.

What exactly could the city council do in order reform the department? Should they keep it as it is? Replace it with the Hennepin County Sheriff's Department? Create a new police department with new reforms and policies? Or keep the current department but implement reforms and policies? This is what this research looks at to determine the best policy alternative for MPD and Minneapolis to implement. To determine the best policy alterative, two cities were researched on how they improved their departments and their outcomes, Compton, and Camden.

With Compton the research looked at how the sheriff’s department was able to perform in the city and with Camden the research looked at how a brand-new department was efficient compared to the previous department.

The City of Compton disbanded their police department and contracted with the LASD to provide the city with police services. Twenty years later the results in Compton were mixed by the residents. LASD was able to update the previous departments' outdated equipment, increase response time, increase the number of officers patrolling the streets, and decrease crime.

However, many of Compton’s residents are still not satisfied with the results, including accusations of police misconduct and the revelation that several deputies are part of a secret group or gang that purposely engages in police brutality. However, despite what has happened in 48

Compton, the results may not be the same if HCSD were to take over Minneapolis police services. Since there are no similar accusations or evidence indicating HCSD conducts in similar behavior or activity.

Fortunately, there have been previous studies on the effects of sheriff departments policing communities who have disbanded their police departments. These studies show that it tends to happen in smaller communities, if funding for the police is a strain on the budget, relations between the city council and police department are severe, and if the number of officers is low that leaves the department unable to address crime effectively. Corruption, high crime rates, and police misdirect were low factors in disbanding police departments.

In Minneapolis relations between city officials and the police department are in good condition as both heads of leadership are working towards the same goals. Which includes improving police conduct, improving the quality of life in the city, and ensuing trust and cooperation are improved. The current leadership has been working to make positive progress on how the officers conduct their services by introducing policy changes.

The results in Camden were mixed as well in the beginning of the new department's inception. However, due to community activism, the new department were able to make improvements and changes. The most common criticism was that the new department implemented the broken windows theory such as frequently writing citations, tickets, and summonses. However, this was due to the city having twice as many police officers patrolling the streets more than ever before.

The new department began to promote community policing by becoming more engaged with the community by hosting more events and walking around more in neighborhoods. The new department also changed its policies on how police officers used force such using de- 49

escalation techniques and using lethal force as an absolute last resort and banning chokeholds and neck restraints. This has led police-related shootings and deaths to an historic low for the city.

Implementation Recommendations

Recommendation 1 - After evaluating the three policy alternatives to improve MPD, it is recommended that the best policy the city council should implement is alternative 3, keeping the current department but implementing reform policies to make the necessary improvements. This includes implementing de-escalation techniques, promoting community policing, encouraging officers to intervene on police-related misconduct, introducing community divisions or organizations within the department, and hosting more community events. Like what has occurred with Camden's new police department in the last decade.

The current department needs to stay because it is still a good department but has a mixed reputation with the community due several incidents that have strained its reputation. MPD does not have the negative reputation that both Compton ‘s and Camden’s police departments had in their communities. MPD has been making progress and improvements throughout the years as it is learning from its mistakes. Chief Arrodondo has been working with the city council and mayor to improve the department's reputation and performance. Chief Arrodondo is willing to cooperate with the residents and make changes he believes will improve police conduct and rebuild community trust.

Recommendation 2 - It is further recommended that MPD continues to receive the necessary funding for the police officers to properly conduct their duties. As we seen before

MPD has seen a decrease in officers in less than a year. This is like what happened in Compton and Camden, this was one reason why both cities wanted new departments because they wanted 50

more police officers. It would be in the city and department's best interest if they continue to recruit more officers. If the department continues to lose more officers, this will decrease their response time in the city. This can lead the city to see a trend of rising crime and cause many residents to feel unsafe in their own communities.

Although it will take a while for the department to fully gain back the trust and support from many of the residents. However, with new policy reforms the department can prove that it is willing to improve and prevent any mistakes officers had made in the past. Crime, use of force, police-related shootings and deaths are declining. However, improvements and progress can still be made. Therefore, the current department needs to stay and implement policies to reform the current culture. The current department has already been taking the right step by prohibiting all forms of chokeholds and neck restraints. With more funding the department can properly train the officers in better and nonlethal or de-escalation techniques.

Recommendation 3 - It is further recommended that the department becomes more engaged with the community. This means that the MPD should help create a community collaborative or a community advisory board. This is where the department works together with various nonprofits and community leaders across the city. This is essential to rebuilding trust and transparency because it allows the department to understand various issues affecting the city and the residents. These various issues and causes can include homelessness, mental health problems, drug addiction, LBGT issues, and domestic abuse problems. Forming a community collaborative or community advisory board will allow officers to effectively respond to certain situations on the job and better understand what many of the city's residents go through. They will also allow residents across the city to voice their concerns and problems directly to the city and law enforcement officials. 51

Recommendation 4- The next recommendation is that MPD needs to create a better culture within the department. In order to do this, they need to train new officers and current officers to act and intervene when they notice a superior officer or fellow officer acting out of the departments policies. The department should make it clear within their policies that any officer who intervenes will not be retaliated against, lose their job, lose their pension, or be scrutinized.

The department also needs penalize those who do not intervene by holding them accountable for the actions of their colleagues. This includes firing officers who do not intervene when a fellow officer performs unnecessary force. This is like what happened to Chauvin’s colleagues as they were fired when they did not intervene.

Recommendation 5- The final recommendation is that MPD ensures specifically in their use-of-force policies that choke holds, and neck restraints are banned. This is to ensure no more people in Minneapolis lose consciousness or die. This will require the department to evaluate their culture be erasing or removing any warrior-mentality the officers may have and create a culture peace and order. The department will need to evaluate where new recruits are being trained at such as the police academies. Since police academies are the first step in being police officers MPD needs to evaluate that these academies are properly training new recruits and that their training is complicit with their policies.

Research Recommendation

During the research of these subjects there were several issues that made the study and research a little bit difficult to conduct. There are several recommendations that could have improved this research and policy analysis. As mentioned before there were some limitations to this study as there was not a lot of academic research written about Compton and Camden and their new police services. Much of the resources and findings included raw data, interviews, 52

reports, and articles. However, some of these articles were written by policy directors and professors but still lack some credibility.

It is recommended that the researchers from these opinion pieces expand on their written work, cite them with credible sources, publish and supported by peer-review journals, and provide lectures or interviews on the subject. More professors should begin reaching the subject as well and more thoroughly. As this will give them credibility since they are academically supported and peer reviewed. Using blogs and opinion pieces from newspapers makes the research lacking credibility and professionalism. However, it is a good start but can be improved on if done more academically and professionally.

It is further recommended that there be research done on communities who have contracted with sheriff departments in Minnesota whether they still do or if they ended their contract. This can include a specific study on HCSD to see if they have contracted with other communities in Hennepin County. This will allow us to evaluate the results and outcomes of their services.

Another recommendation is that more academic studies be done on Camden’s police department. More studies can show and explain the problems Camden faced, explain the process of disbandment, and the results of the new department. Research on Camden is limited because of it is a new incident, However, it has been ten years this should be enough time to evaluate the department in Camden and the outcomes. This will be a good opportunity to see how much things have change within the last decade. The research can include crime statistics, public opinion, use-of-force statistics, and quality of life in the city. A new in-depth research can provide valuable insight on how effective the department was and determine the effectiveness of community activism in providing change within the new department. 53

The next recommendation is that more research includes data straight from government agencies or police departments themselves instead secondary sources like newspaper articles.

The one problem with this process is that it can take time to require it as many county departments and city governments require researchers to fill out a form on what is being requested and why it is being requested. Obviously, conducting this type of research will take time to complete as the request process can take a month or two. Much of the data is important but can be difficult to receive especially if the research or study is on a time budget or must meet a deadline.

The Trial and the Verdict

Derek Chauvin’s trial began on March 29th, 2021 and lasted until April 13th, he was charged with second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder and second- degree manslaughter. During the trial there were 45 witnesses who testified in court both for the defense and the prosecution. These witnesses included bystanders at the scene, the person that filmed the arrest on their phone, paramedics, members of Floyds family, forensic experts, medical experts, the 911 dispatcher, and officers in MPD including Police Chief Arradondo

(Wright, 2021).

Chief Arradondo along with other officers from the department testified in court that

Chauvin violated the departments policies by using unnecessary force by kneeing on Floyd’s neck causing him to lose oxygen and consciousness resulting in his death. Chief Arradondo also testified that Chauvin not properly respond by giving Floyd the proper medical attention.

Paramedics and medical experts testified that Floyd died due the neck restraint but were split on other factors that they may have contributed to Floyd’s death, which included drugs and heart issues. 54

A few of the witnesses testified that drugs and Floyd’s heart disease were not contributing factors to his death. Andrew Baker the county medical examiner who performed

Floyd’s autopsy argued that Floyd’s medical issues were not direct causes to his death nor the neck restraint, but the stress of Chauvin’s actions were the direct cause to Floyd’s death as it increased his levels of stress and adrenaline (Wright, 2021). The defenses witnesses included officers and medical experts as well and many of their arguments included Floyd’s previous encounters with police officer, his problem with drug addiction caused him to die of overdose, his other related health issues were the direct causes to his death, and that Chauvin acted within the departments policies of necessary force.

After the prosecution and defense presented their evidence and arguments to the jury, they then began their deliberation. After 10 hours the jury reached their verdict and founded

Chauvin guilty on all three counts. Several weeks after the trial Chauvin will be given his sentence and could face 40 years in prison (Wright, 2021). The verdict provided Floyd’s family and millions of people closure and that justice was served. However, they acknowledge that the verdict will not bring back George Floyd. Many believe that this experience and trauma will finally create change in Minneapolis’s police department and make improvements in the criminal justice system in the country.

55

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