Minneapolis City Council plans to disband police department

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey was booed out of a protest rally after expressing his opposition to a total abolition of the police force.

By AARON REICH
Protesters in Minneapolis demonstrate against the death in police custody of George Floyd, May 29, 2020 (photo credit: STEPHEN MATUREN/GETTY IMAGES/JTA)
Protesters in Minneapolis demonstrate against the death in police custody of George Floyd, May 29, 2020
(photo credit: STEPHEN MATUREN/GETTY IMAGES/JTA)
Nine Minneapolis City Council members announced their intent to dismantle the city's police department following the controversy over the death of George Floyd.
The council members, who have a majority of nine in the 13-person council, added that they intended to create a new and transformative model of public safety.
"Decades of police reform efforts have proved that the Minneapolis Police Department cannot be reformed, and will never be accountable for its action," the statement read.
"We are here today to begin the process of ending the Minneapolis Police Department and creating a new transformative model for cultivating safety in our city. We recognize that we don't have all the answers about what a police-free future looks like, but our community does. We're committing to engaging with every willing community member in the City of Minneapolis over the next year to identify what safety looks like for everyone. We'll be taking intermediate steps towards ending the MPD through the budget process and other policy and budget decisions over the coming weeks and months."
Prior to this statement, both City Council member Jeremiah Ellison and City Council president Lisa Bender took to Twitter on Thursday to voice their intention to dismantle the police department.
It is still unclear how they plan to dismantle the police department, though City Council member Philippe Cunningham said the process would only be done after careful research.
“We’re not going to tomorrow all of a sudden have nobody for you to call for help. There will be thoughtful and intentional work that’s done, research engagement, learning that happens in a transition that will happen over time,” Cunningham said, according to local CBS News affiliate WCCO.
Calls to defund or dismantle police departments have been a common feature of the wave of protests sparked by the death of George Floyd, an unarmed African-American killed by police officers in Minneapolis on May 25.
While some cities have proposed significant cuts and reforms to their police departments – in Los Angeles, for instance, Mayor Eric Garcetti promised to cut up to $150 million from the police budget, according to The New York Times – no other city has gone so far as to attempt to dismantle the police entirely.
However, not all authority figures within the city support this plan.
On Saturday, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey was booed out of a protest rally after voicing his opposition to a "full abolition" of the police force, prompting protesters to shout "shame" and "Jacob, go home."
“He’s up for reelection next year, and if he says no guess what the f**k we are going to do next year,” one protester said, according to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
Marcy Oster/JTA contributed to this report.