MINNEAPOLIS — A two-year Justice Department investigation has found that the Minneapolis Police Department engaged in patterns of excessive force and discrimination, U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland announced on Friday.
The investigation was launched in 2021, one day after former MPD officer Derek Chauvin was convicted of murdering George Floyd.
Since Floyd's murder, the KARE 11 Investigates team has taken a closer look at policies and procedures at the Minneapolis Police Department prior to the arrival of current MPD Chief Brian O'Hara. KARE 11's reporting was even cited-- twice-- in the full Justice Department report.
June 2020: Discipline rare at MPD
Just days after George Floyd's murder, a KARE 11 Investigates report found that only about two percent of the complaints filed against Minneapolis police officers since 2015 had resulted in any disciplinary action by 2020. Some officers with a dozen or more complaints filed against them had never been disciplined, and about 40 cases had been open for at least three years without action.
August 2020: MPD misconduct complaints under-counted
A few months later, a joint KARE 11 and NBC News investigation found hundreds of people who started the complaint process since 2016 had their information classified as a so-called “inquiry” – not a formal complaint. When a complaint is classified as an “inquiry” it is not investigated and never listed in a police officer’s complaint file.
May 2021: Police 'coaching' hides bad cops
Following George Floyd’s death, Minneapolis city leaders promised more transparency. However, one year later, two members of the Minneapolis Police Conduct Oversight Commission (PCOC) told KARE 11 Investigates the police department’s continued use of so-called “coaching” – where problem behaviors are verbally addressed with an officer – still left most complaints about officer misconduct cloaked in secrecy.
May 2021: MPD searches Black drivers at 29 times the rate of white drivers
This KARE 11 Investigation was cited in the Justice Department's report, showing a stark disparity in traffic stops involving Black drivers versus white drivers.
July 2021: Race often listed as 'unknown' in MPD use-of-force reports
Another KARE Investigates report cited by the DOJ found required "Use of Force" forms often failed to record the race of persons involved, or listed race as "unknown."
February 2022: Police with misconduct histories serving as trainers
In 2022, KARE 11 Investigates discovered that cops with records of misconduct continued to train new generations of recruits. The report found that of the more than 400 Minneapolis cops who have served as field training officers from 2016 to 2022, nearly a third of them had been disciplined or named in lawsuits that cost taxpayers more than $34 million.
