Minneapolis, Minnesota Department of Health affirm commitment to police reforms despite DOJ's motion to dismiss

News comes days before 5th anniversary of George Floyd's murder by Minneapolis Police officers

Mayor Jacob Frey, Police Chief Brian O’Hara, and other City leaders host a media availability to address the U.S. Department of Justice’s motion to dismiss the federal consent decree with the City of Minneapolis.

Posted Wednesday, May 21, 2025 2:11 pm

CUAPB SAY NOT ENOUGH PROGRESS

While the city has checked a few boxes on the tasks related to the consent decree, the city has little to brag about in terms of actual conditions for Minneapolis residents, say representatives from Communities United Against Police Brutality in a press release. In the five years since the murder of George Floyd and the nearly two years since the Minnesota Department of Human Rights Consent Decree was signed off in court on July 13, 2023, progress has been glacially slow:

• The city claims near elimination of the city’s backlog of complaints when, in fact, only about half of the backlog of complaints has been handled.

• Most MPD policies, which were supposed to be completed in year one, remain in draft status, delaying training on new policies.

· The disciplinary matrix, which is hopelessly vague and outdated, has not been revised, subjecting discipline to being overturned in arbitration.

• The most significant findings of the MDHR investigation involve racial discrimination. Yet no metrics are available to track racist policing. Quarterly review panels are supposed to identify violations and patterns of bad policing but they have no data to see these trends.

• Mayor Frey continues to tolerate tone deaf statements from Chief O’Hara including his most recent statement that demanding accountability and professional policing is “bourgeois,” and blaming Davis Moturi and Ebony Dobbins for the police misconduct that led to their harm. The mayor also failed to address O’Hara’s disastrous hiring of Tyler Timberlake and attempt to rehire Charlie Storlie. A chief who displays such open hostility to the community cannot be the change agent we need.

“We understand that change takes time,” stated Michelle Gross, president of CUAPB. “However, the progress being claimed by the city is not being felt in the streets.”

'WE OBJECT!'

Communities United Against Police Brutality has filed a Motion in Opposition to the US Department of Justice’s motion to withdraw from the consent decree with the City of Minneapolis/Minneapolis Police Department. Attached to the motion are 51 exhibits, totaling 867 pages, demonstrating why the DOJ consent decree remains necessary.

“The findings in two thorough investigations by both the Minnesota Department of Human Rights and the U.S. Department of Justice make clear the need for this consent decree. The conditions that lead to the murder of George Floyd continue to this day,” stated Michelle Gross, president of CUAPB.

"It is especially outrageous that the Trump administration chose the week of the fifth anniversary of George Floyd’s murder to file their motion. This is pouring salt into a wound that remains unhealed.

"The City of Minneapolis has stated that it is committed to enacting the recommendations in the DOJ consent decree even without court oversight. We intend to make sure that they do. We will be making an announcement tomorrow about how we will provide the robust oversight needed to ensure the city does more than just 'check the boxes' and that substantial reforms are made."

The Motion in Opposition and Declaration in Opposition (exhibits) can be found in PACER in case 0:25-cv-00048-PAM-DLM, documents 61 and 62.

On May 21, 2025, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, Police Chief Brian O’Hara, and other city leaders reiterated their commitment to continuing police reform work already underway, despite the U.S. Department of Justice’s (DOJ) motion to dismiss the consent decree case more than four months after an agreement was reached and just days before the five-year anniversary of the murder of George Floyd.  

On Jan. 6, the city entered into a proposed federal consent decree with the DOJ, outlining policy, resource and training requirements that would, together with the settlement agreement with the Minnesota Department of Human Rights (MDHR), continue to guide the city’s and Minneapolis Police Department’s (MPD) reform efforts over the next several years. The DOJ and the city jointly filed the agreement in federal court, seeking court approval. Since that time, DOJ requested and was granted three consecutive 30-day stays of the court proceedings.

Today, the DOJ filed a motion to dismiss the case. The decision on whether to dismiss the case or let it proceed now lies with the federal judge. Regardless of the outcome, the city of Minneapolis’s path remains clear – to continue to implement the reforms, apparently without support from the White House, according to a city press release.

“We’re doing it anyway,” said Mayor Jacob Frey. “We will implement every reform outlined in the consent decree – because accountability isn’t optional. Our independent monitor has lauded the meaningful progress we’ve made under the state settlement agreement, and the public can count on clear, measurable proof that our reforms are moving forward.” 

Just yesterday, Effective Law Enforcement for All (ELEFA) released a report documenting Minneapolis’ accomplishments in the first year of monitoring under the MDHR settlement agreement. The report highlights better policies, more effective training plans, stronger officer wellness programs, and a near elimination of complaint backlogs.  

The report notes that Minneapolis and MPD have made “more progress toward building a foundation for sustainable reform in the first year of monitoring than nearly any other jurisdiction” operating under a court-ordered reform agreement. ELEFA serves as the independent evaluator for the city’s compliance with the MDHR agreement, and a substantial portion of the reforms in the federal consent decree are already addressed in the city’s agreement with MDHR.

“On top of the progress we’ve made with the MDHR settlement agreement, we’re committed to implementing the additional reforms in the federal agreement, with or without a consent decree,” said Minneapolis Community Safety Commissioner Todd Barnette. “The federal case isn’t over until the judge rules, but that said, we will ensure this important work continues.”

Reform supports police and public trust

Despite claims by the Trump Administration that court-ordered reform hurts law enforcement, Minneapolis is seeing the opposite, according to the city press release. These reforms are strengthening the Minneapolis Police Department through better training, stronger officer wellness programs, and more effective recruitment and retention.

Since entering the MDHR agreement in 2023, the city has seen:

• A drop in violent crime

• Higher officer morale

• A major increase in police applications and new recruits

• More stability within MPD leadership and ranks

"I came to Minneapolis to lead this department through historic reform. As the one-year ELEFA report shows, MPD had already accomplished more in one year than any other city under a consent decree. But we’re not stopping there,” said Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara. “We will go beyond what is required and deliver real, lasting change for our residents. Our goal is to make MPD the best police department in the country and provide the people of Minneapolis the excellent policing service they deserve."

The city has already begun to implement the reforms listed in the federal agreement and will continue to do so.

More information about police reform in Minneapolis is available on the City’s website.

Watch the mayor's news conference here.

MINNESOTA DHR COURT ENFORCEABLE AGREEMENT IS BINDING AND ISN'T GOING ANYWHERE

The Minnesota Department of Human Rights, the state’s civil rights enforcement agency, today issued the following statement following news that the U.S. Department of Justice filed a motion to dismiss the proposed federal consent decree with the City of Minneapolis (City) and the Minneapolis Police Department (MPD):

“While the Department of Justice walks away from their federal consent decree nearly five years from the murder of George Floyd, our department and the state court consent decree isn’t going anywhere,”said Minnesota Department of Human Rights Commissioner Rebecca Lucero. “Under the state agreement, the city and MPD must make transformational changes to address race-based policing. The tremendous amount of work that lies ahead for the city, including MPD, cannot be understated. And our department will be here every step of the way.”

In March 2023, the Department of Human Rights and the city reached and filed a court enforceable agreement. In July 2023, Hennepin County District Court Judge Karen Janisch approved the agreement, State of Minnesota by Rebecca Lucero, Commissioner of the Minnesota Department of Human Rights, vs. City of Minneapolis, Court File No. 27-cv-23-4177.

The state court enforceable agreement is the result of the Department of Human Rights’ investigation into the city and MPD, which was immediately launched following the murder of George Floyd. The investigation found the city and MPD engage in a pattern or practice of race discrimination in violation of Minnesota’s civil rights law.

The state court enforceable agreement addresses the findings by requiring the city and MPD to make transformational changes to their organizational culture by recognizing the humanity and civil rights of community members, addressing race-based policing, and strengthening public safety.

The agreement contains many provisions that are based on what Minneapolis community members and MPD officers shared during extensive engagement conducted by the Department of Human Rights.

Effective Law Enforcement for All, the independent evaluator for the state court enforceable agreement, recently issued its latest semi-annual progress report. The report and the Department of Human Rights’ letter responding to the report is available on Effective Law Enforcement for All’s website.

The court is the only entity that can terminate the state court enforceable agreement once it determines that the city and MPD have reached full, effective, and sustained compliance with the terms of the agreement.

STATEMENT FROM COUNCIL MEMBER WONSLEY

Council member Robin Wonsley: "I will be moving forward legislative action that requests the City Attorney to formally begin the process of amending the City’s existing settlement agreement with the Minnesota Department of Human Rights to incorporate all the provisions from the Department of Justice Consent Decree that the Trump administration is moving to end.
"Ensuring that the provisions that were intended to be in the federal consent decree are included in our MDHR settlement agreement will bolster accountability and limit the ability for goalposts to be changed later, either by this mayoral administration or future ones.
"This legislative action will come before Council during the first week of June and I will share updates as it progresses.
"I have heard from many residents that empty words and promises can no longer be the City’s response as it relates to police reform. For decades, City leaders have broken promises to residents, and those broken promises ultimately led to the murder of George Floyd and many other victims. The action I am bringing forward is intended to demonstrate this council’s commitment to not repeat this pattern, and instead to use every tool we have to hold this Mayor and future mayors accountable to ensuring that MPD provides Minneapolis residents with high quality safety services that respects their human and constitutional rights."