MPD
Every time I turn around, I hear or read someone saying that Minneapolis is egregious in something. I'm sorry, but I'm not buying it. I am sure it is fun to say it, considering how people ALWAYS want to knock Minnesotans of their high horse, but the conclusion doesn't fit the data I know. The latest is from correspondent Gross who assures us our police department is egregious for its brutaility. Now, I want it clear that I go along with most of her points. The department has NOT been conscientious in disciplining its own. That has been very destructive to community trust.
Read more carefully, please. What I said was that MPD has a reputation for being ONE of the worst. This is in large measure because police officers here have inadequate supervision and little in the way of policies to guide them--two things that are absolutely necessary to any job in which the employees performing that job have a lot of discretion. Just last week we learned that MPD doesn't even have a strip search or body cavity search policy--now why is that? MPD is grossly lacking in a number of policies and officers are poorly trained in the policies they do have as well as in the area of basic civil rights.
Are you forgetting that a mentally ill woman, Barbara Schneider, was gunned down in her home as she cowered in fear, after police broke down both her front door and her bedroom door? How about Abuka Sanders, whose car was boxed in by cop cars in an alleyway near his home when cops shot him up 35 times? What about Demitrius Sesler, who a forensic specialist proved was shot 6 times in the back as he ran from police? MPD never even claimed he had a weapon. Let's not forget Efrain Depaz, innocent passenger in a low speed chase, shot in his neck as he slumped, unconscious, in the front seat of the car after an accident. Now, he was a real threat, eh?
As familiar as I am with the Malice Green case and the others you named, I surely hope we do not need to get into a contest with other cities about who has the worst police brutality. What we need to do is recognize that this city has a serious problem and get busy trying to solve it. I believe that's exactly what CUAPB and others are trying to do. But first, it seems, we have to convince a whole lot of folks that the problem even exists. (I'm referring to others on the list, not necessarily Mr. Mork.)
So is there a "top ten" list of officers most frequently complained about at the CUAPB website? Can you provide a link to that?
(It does little good to claim to collect these names, if you don't make them available to people.)
Tim Bonham, Ward 12, Standish-Ericsson
Actually, we have something even better than that. If you go on our website, you will find a page on police complaints. Click on the name of a police officer and up pops their complaints with Internal Affairs and the CRA. The goal is eventually to have all info loaded on all cops with all area police departments and, on those (few) complaints that have been upheld, to have the ability to click on the complaint and see a PDF of the actual complaint paperwork. PLEASE BEAR IN MIND THIS PAGE IS STILL VERY MUCH UNDER CONSTRUCTION and it will be a while before it is done due to sheer volume of work involved (everything has to be loaded by hand) and the fact that the work is done by volunteers. Our website address is www.charityadvantage.com/CUAPB
A word about the Martha Donald case: I'm eager to post information about this case that is not commonly known and that will dispel much what has been said about Ms. Donald. However, this information was shared with me by her family (it was documented) and I do not feel I can share it without the family's permission. I am attempting to reach the family and will share the info if they give me an okay. I'm guessing it will depend on the status of any legal cases. I'm not trying to avoid the issue--I'm trying to uphold a confidence entrusted to me.
Michelle Gross Bryn Mawr
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