In early June, the Minneapolis City Council promised to dismantle its police department after they considered it incapable of reform. Their decision came after a push from Black Lives Matter activists who called for the abolition of police in that city after three Minneapolis officers murdered George Floyd. However, on Wednesday, a state agency decided that they needed a more extensive review of the plan and the proposal to dismantle the police department will no longer be on the ballot this November.
Today, #Minneapolis City Council members formally announced their commitment to end the MPD and create a new transformative model of public safety.
Here is their statement: pic.twitter.com/0jAE8YKQjf
— Local Progress (@LocalProgress) June 7, 2020
The decision to delay the vote was made on Wednesday after the Charter Commission, the state agency that oversees the city charter, voted to take 90 days- until Tuesday, November 3- to review the Council’s proposal. The setback by the Commission means that the August 21 deadline for the November ballot will be missed, and voters will not be able to make a decision on its police department this year.
A meeting has been tentatively set by the Charter Commission chair to set a course of action for the next ninety days.
The Council’s decision to dismantle the Minneapolis police department came with a proposal to create a Department of Community Safety and Violence Prevention.
The Minneapolis Charter Commission has voted 10-5 to keep the public safety charter amendment off the ballot in 2020, claiming the need to do more engagement before letting every member of our community vote.
— Lisa Bender (@lisabendermpls) August 5, 2020
At first glance, police abolition appears radical but it has proven to work in some instances. In 2012, Camden, New Jersey, had the highest crime rate in the country. When it fired all of its police officers and transitioned to community policing, homicide rates fell from 67 percent to 25 percent over the course of seven years.
