U.S. Justice Department Investigates Minneapolis Police Practices After George Floyd Murder
(Photo : Andrew Harnik/Pool via REUTERS)
A federal civil rights inquiry by the U.S. Department of Justice was launched into the embattled police department in Minneapolis, a day after jurors convicted former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin in the killing of George Floyd, The Washington Post reported Thursday.
Attorney General Merrick Garland Wednesday said the wide-ranging investigation, known as a pattern-or-practice probe, will go beyond a separate federal criminal inquiry into Floyd's murder last year.
The DOJ will determine whether the Minneapolis Police Department engages in a pattern of unconstitutional policing using "excessive force," including during protests, Garland said.
The DOJ will also examine MPD's use of force against demonstrators and whether the department's treatment of people with behavioral disabilities violates federal law.
The move follows national outrage over the death of unarmed black man Floyd by Derek Chauvin, who is white. The former officer was convicted of all charges against him on Tuesday.
"Nothing can fill the void the loved ones of George Floyd have felt since his death. My heart goes out to them and to all those who have experienced similar loss," The Post quoted Garland as saying.
Currently, the DOJ has four ongoing police practice investigations in addition to the one in Minneapolis.
Chauvin's guilty verdict sparked reactions across the U.S., as quoted by Voice of America:
"To hear them say guilty, I just started tearing up... it was definitely overwhelming because it was something I've definitely not been used to hearing," Houston senior Lexy Bogney, president of Baylor NAACP, said.
"The verdict is an important step forward for justice in Minnesota. The trial is over, but our work has only begun," Minnesota Governor Tim Walz said.
"Today, a jury did the right thing. But true justice requires much more. Michelle and I send our prayers to the Floyd family," former U.S. President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama said.
Meanwhile, protesters are demanding justice for Ma'Khia Bryant, a black teenager who was fatally shot by Ohio police Tuesday afternoon.
The incident took place in southeast Columbus, just minutes before Chauvin's murder conviction, according to the New York Times.
Floyd family lawyer Ben Crump responded to Bryant's death on Twitter Tuesday night, reminding everyone that the fight for racial justice is far from over.
On Sunday, three people were killed while two were wounded in a shooting in Kenosha, Wisconsin, continuing the deadly string of similar incidents that preceded it.
Since March 16, the U.S. has recorded at least 50 mass shootings, according to CNN and data from the Gun Violence Archive, police reports and local media.