Connect with us

Minneapolis, MN

Court rules Amir Locke civil rights lawsuit can proceed against Minneapolis, officer who killed him

Published

on

Court rules Amir Locke civil rights lawsuit can proceed against Minneapolis, officer who killed him


MINNEAPOLIS — The family of Amir Locke, the 22-year-old man fatally shot by police during a no-knock raid inside a downtown Minneapolis apartment building in 2022, says their civil lawsuit against the city will proceed.

On Monday, the United States District Court denied the City of Minneapolis’ motion to dismiss the wrongful death suit filed last year by Locke’s parents, Karen Wells and Andre Locke. The suit accuses the city and officer Mark Hanneman of violating Locke’s civil rights. 

The court also ruled that Hanneman wasn’t entitled to qualified immunity.

The court’s ruling emphasized “the plausibility of the plaintiffs’ claims that Officer Hanneman’s use of deadly force violated Amir Locke’s Fourth Amendment rights and that the City of Minneapolis maintained unconstitutional policies that contributed to Locke’s death.”

Advertisement

The court added that footage of the deadly raid didn’t contradict the allegations made by Locke’s family in the lawsuit, and the videos “plausibly” show Locke “did not point the firearm at officers or use the weapon in a menacing way and that Amir was attempting to comply with officers’ commands.”

The lawsuit also accuses the Minneapolis Police Department of “discriminatory, race-based policing” — including excessive force and no-knock warrants — that disproportionately target people of color, citing data from a Minnesota Department of Human Rights report.  

Locke’s shooting death

Amir Locke was killed on the morning of Feb. 2, 2022, by Hanneman, during a SWAT team-led search warrant execution involving Locke’s cousin inside Bolero Flats apartments.

Police searched three apartment units connected to Mekhi Speed and his family. Locke, who was not listed on the warrant, was asleep on a couch in Speed’s brother’s unit. 

Body camera footage shows officers unlock the apartment’s door and enter with guns drawn before yelling, “police” and “search warrant.”

Advertisement

Locke is seen sitting up while wrapped in a blanket, holding a handgun that his family says was legally purchased. Hanneman shoots Locke three times. The entire encounter lasts only about 10 seconds.

Amir Locke

WCCO


The searches were connected to Speed’s involvement in the marijuana-sale-related shooting death of Otis Elder days earlier in St. Paul. Speed, who wasn’t at Bolero Flats that morning, was charged with second-degree murder soon after Locke’s death. He was convicted that July and sentenced to 16 years in prison.

Advertisement

No charges filed against Hanneman

In April 2022, Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman and Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison announced their offices would not bring any criminal charges against Hanneman, citing “insufficient admissible evidence.”

“Specifically, the State would be unable to disprove beyond a reasonable doubt any of the elements of Minnesota’s use-of-deadly-force statute that authorizes the use of force by Officer Hanneman,” their joint statement read. “Nor would the State be able to prove beyond a reasonable doubt a criminal charge against any other officer involved in the decision-making that led to the death of Amir Locke.”

Wells called the decision “disgusting.”

“Be prepared for this family, because every time you take a step, we’re going to be right behind you. This is not over,” Wells said.

Locke’s family fights for ban of no-knock warrants

Wells and the rest of her family have been pushing for a statewide ban against no-knock warrants.

Advertisement

“This has got to stop,” she told WCCO in 2023. “Amir will be the face of banning no-knock warrants. He will not die in vain.”

While campaigning in 2021, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey made claims that he banned the practice. Months later, after winning a second term, Frey admitted that his claim was misleading, and the policy change he had made only required police to announce their presence before entering a residence.

“Language became more casual, including my own, which did not reflect the necessary precision or nuance. And I own that,” Frey said.

Weeks after Locke’s killing, Frey ordered police to limit the use of no-knock warrants with exceptions. Officers are now required to wait 20 seconds after announcing their presence for warrant searches, and 30 seconds for searches executed between 8 p.m. and 7 a.m.

Frey also ordered the creation of a risk classification and evaluation system for warrants.

Advertisement



Source link

Advertisement

Minneapolis, MN

Man dead, 2 others hurt in overnight shooting in Minneapolis

Published

on

Man dead, 2 others hurt in overnight shooting in Minneapolis


Police say two people were hurt and one other man died.

A homicide investigation is underway in Minneapolis after a shooting early Friday morning killed one man and hurt two others.

Minneapolis police were called to the area of East Franklin Avenue and Chicago Avenue at around 12:30 a.m.

5 EYEWITNESS NEWS cameras caught more than 65 evidence markers scattered across the ground in the area and shattered glass at a bus shelter. Some nearby businesses also appeared to have some damage.

Advertisement

Minneapolis police are still working to determine what led up to the shooting and who was involved but investigators say first responders found the three men suffering from gunshot wounds.

One injured man is in his 40s, the other in his 50s, police say. Both were taken to a hospital by ambulance.

The third man died at the scene. His name and age haven’t yet been publicly released.

Police say early information suggests the men were on a sidewalk when at least one person opened fire, then fled in a vehicle.

So far, no arrests have been made.

Advertisement

Anyone with information about what happened is asked to call police at 612-673-5845 to leave a voicemail or email policetips@minneapolismn.gov.

“This is a tragic and deeply disturbing act of violence that has taken a life, and left others seriously injured,” MPD Chief Brian O’Hara said. “This kind of violence is unacceptable, and we are committed to identifying those responsible and holding them accountable.”

Minneapolis police investigating alleyway shooting near East Franklin Avenue

It comes less than 30 hours after another serious shooting along East Franklin Avenue, just a half-mile west of Friday’s scene. That incident left a man hospitalized with a potentially life-threatening gunshot wound. No arrests have been announced in that case either.

5 EYEWITNESS NEWS is still working to learn more about this shooting. Stay with KSTP-TV for the latest updates on air and on the KSTP app.

Advertisement

Android app



Source link

Continue Reading

Minneapolis, MN

A Minneapolis woman recounts death of Alex Pretti as lawyers eye a class action lawsuit

Published

on

A Minneapolis woman recounts death of Alex Pretti as lawyers eye a class action lawsuit


MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A Minneapolis woman who confronted federal immigration officers alongside Alex Pretti in January was among a group of potential litigants who spoke out Thursday about alleged excessive force against people protesting or monitoring the enforcement surge in Minnesota.

Georgia Savageford, who introduced herself as Wynnie at a news conference, said she was inside an officer’s vehicle when she saw federal agents shoot Pretti.

“That day has changed me forever,” she said. “The trauma will haunt me for the rest of my life, and I will never be the same.”

Savageford said she had been legally observing the actions of federal officers in Minneapolis ever since the shooting death of Renee Good by a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer on Jan. 7. She said she was doing so again on the morning of Jan. 24 when an agent pushed her twice and caused her to fall.

Advertisement

“As I was going down, three agents proceeded to tackle me and drag me face-down into the middle of the street. They knelt on my back, twisted my arms and my legs to the ground, and handcuffed me. The cuffs were so tight I lost feeling in my hands, which resulted in temporary nerve damage,” she recounted.

Officials with the Department of Homeland Security and ICE did not immediately respond Thursday to emails seeking comment. Minnesota officials sued the Trump administration on Tuesday for access to evidence they say they need to independently investigate the killings.

Savageford said Pretti recorded video of her arrest and yelled at agents to leave her alone.

She said the officers put her in the back of a vehicle, from which she saw agents shoot and kill Pretti on the other side of the street.

“At that moment, I thought I was going to die too. I pleaded with the agents to understand why another life was taken, and to not take mine,” she said.

Advertisement

She added that they told her to shut up and to stop being hysterical. She said they then took her to an ICE holding facility where she was held for 12 hours in a cold cell without ready access to food, water or the bathroom until she was released without being charged.

“I did not know him, but I knew he had my back,” she said of Pretti. “I know the kind of heart he had. One that loves and protects without limits.”

Savageford shared her story at a news conference where civil rights attorney John Burris, of Oakland, California, and other lawyers laid out how they’re paving the way for potential class-action lawsuits over alleged excessive force used against protesters and monitors.

Burris, who specializes in police misconduct, helped win an $11 million settlement against the Oakland Police Department in 2003, and helped win a civil jury verdict of $3.8 million for the late motorist Rodney King, who was beaten by Los Angeles police officers in 1991.

He said he and his colleagues have filed complaints with federal agencies involved in the Minnesota enforcement surge on behalf of 10 people, including Savageford, as the first step in a process that’s likely to lead to a larger class-action lawsuit.

Advertisement

“We have many others that are under investigation that have not completed the process. But I thought it was important for us to start this process now. Put the government on notice that we’re here,” Burris said.



Source link

Continue Reading

Minneapolis, MN

Boy who shielded classmate during school shooting receives Medal of Honor

Published

on

Boy who shielded classmate during school shooting receives Medal of Honor


A fifth grader from Minneapolis received the Citizen Honor Award from the Congressional Medal of Honor Society.

Victor Greenawalt jumped in front of his friend during a mass shooting at the Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis.

Weston Halsne told local station KARE 11 that Greenawalt saved his life.

“It was really scary,” Halsne told KARE 11. “My friend Victor, like, saved me, though. Because he laid on top of me. But he got hit.”

Advertisement

Two students were killed and several were injured after a shooter opened fire through the windows of the church last year. The shooter died on the scene from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

The Congressional Medal Society said in a statement that Greenawalt showed “extraordinary bravery far beyond his years.”

MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA – SEPTEMBER 3: Flowers line a pathway to Annunciation Catholic Church as U.S. Vice President JD Vance and second lady Usha Vance visit to pay their respects to victims of the shooting there on September 3, 2025 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The shooting left two students dead and many more wounded. (Photo by Alex Wroblewski-Pool/Getty Images)

“Instinctively, Victor protected a classmate with his own body, directly saving their life during the attack,” the society said in a written statement. “His courage and selflessness became a powerful symbol of hope and humanity for a community in crisis.”

Greenawalt was hospitalized following the shooting, according to a verified GoFundMe page. His sister was also injured.

Advertisement

He flew to Washington with his family on Wednesday to accept the award.

Greeenawalt met with Sens. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., and Sen. Tina Smith, D-Minn., while on Capitol Hill. The ceremony also included a wreath-laying at Arlington National Cemetery.

Comment with Bubbles

BE THE FIRST TO COMMENT

He received the Young Hero award, which honors individuals age 17 or younger for their courage.

Advertisement



Source link

Continue Reading

Trending