Minneapolis to Vote on Whether to Replace Police Force With Public Safety Department
05:47 GMT 02.11.2021 (Updated: 07:52 GMT 02.11.2021)
© Sputnik / Artur Gabdrahmanov
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WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - The US city of Minneapolis on Tuesday will vote on whether to replace their police department with a Department of Public Safety in the wake of civil rights protests sparked by the killing of George Floyd in the city in May 2020.
"Shall the Minneapolis City Charter be amended to remove the Police Department and replace it with a Department of Public Safety that employs a comprehensive public health approach to the delivery of functions by the Department of Public Safety, with those specific functions to be determined by the Mayor and City Council by ordinance", the measure asks.
The measure will need support from 51% of Minneapolis residents in order to pass. If passed, the Minneapolis Police Department would be replaced with the Department of Public Safety, which would combine social and medical workers with peace officers to take a comprehensive public health approach to safety.
Officers stand guard outside Brooklyn Center Police Department with trash thrown at them by demonstrators at their feet after police allegedly shot and killed a man, who local media report is identified by the victim's mother as Daunte Wright, in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota, U.S., April 11, 2021.
© REUTERS / NICHOLAS PFOSI
The city has been the epicentre of worldwide racial justice protests following the killing of George Floyd, a 47-year old black man, by former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin.
Chauvin was found guilty of second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder, and second-degree manslaughter, and sentenced to 22 years in prison for his role in the death of Floyd.
