Minneapolis, MN
Minneapolis moves forward on proposal to shift violence prevention programs to the county
After a long and sometimes heated discussion Monday afternoon, the Minneapolis City Council agreed to move forward with a controversial proposal to shift around $1.2 million to Hennepin County so that government may temporarily take over the management of two city violence prevention programs.
Under the proposal, Hennepin County would oversee the city’s Group Violence Intervention and Youth Group Violence Intervention programs until the end of the year. The programs focus a range of social services, mentoring and other resources for people who’ve been most involved in violent activity.
Supporters of the measure say the city’s Neighborhood Safety Department has mismanaged funding for the program, resulting in some vendors not being paid for providing services.
Minneapolis Public Safety Commissioner Todd Barnette opposes the plan.
MPR News helps you turn down the noise and build shared understanding. Turn up your support for this public resource and keep trusted journalism accessible to all.
“We don’t know what Hennepin County would do with the $1.2 million,” said Barnette. “I don’t know if they will undergo a new RFP process for the vendors. Hennepin County is not accountable to the legal requirements that we are.”
Minneapolis public safety commissioner Toddrick Barnette listens during a behavioral crisis response press conference at Canopy Mental Health in Minneapolis.
Ben Hovland | MPR News 2024
He also said the shift will disrupt the programs. City staff told members of the council that Group Violence Intervention would have to pause as the county develops compatible programming.
However, in a letter to council members, Hennepin County Commissioner Angela Conley and County Attorney Mary Moriarty said they welcomed the opportunity to work with the city to combat violence. And they said the county already administers youth group violence intervention programs in Minneapolis.
Council member Robin Wonsley said the county has the capacity to manage the city’s violence intervention efforts.
“So as in the letter that they sent us, they will be able to get these programs up and going, I believe, pretty quickly and without disruption,” she said.
The council’s committee voted narrowly, 7-5 to forward the proposal to the next full council meeting scheduled for Thursday without recommendation.
Minneapolis, MN
Man suffers life-threatening injuries in Minneapolis shooting
A Christmas Day shooting has left a man hospitalized and fighting for his life in Minneapolis.
Minneapolis Police Sgt. Garrett Parten says it happened at around 6:50 a.m. Thursday near the intersection of Cedar Avenue and 17th Avenue South, in the city’s Seward neighborhood.
Officers responded to a report of a shooting and found a man with potentially life-threatening injuries.
Parten says officers provided aid until the man could be taken to a hospital by ambulance.
Investigators believe the suspect was dressed in black clothing and fled the scene before officers arrived.
No arrests had been made as of Thursday night.
The investigation remains active.
Minneapolis, MN
Man suffers serious injuries in Minneapolis stabbing; police investigating
Minneapolis police are investigating after they say a man suffered “potentially life-threatening injuries” in a stabbing on Thursday morning.
It happened around 4:45 a.m. near Franklin Avenue East and Chicago Avenue. Officers were called there after reports of a bleeding man boarding a Metro Transit bus.
The man was taken to the hospital after receiving medical help from the officers.
According to police, the stabbing did not happen on the bus.
Investigators are looking into what led to the shooting, and say there’s a “possibility that it occurred during an attempted robbery.”
As of Thursday afternoon, no one has been arrested.
Minneapolis, MN
Hundreds of first responders treated to free holiday dinner from NE Minneapolis businesses
Protecting and serving Minneapolis came with a generous lunch break today, all of it thanks to volunteers and donors.
The 42nd Annual First Responders Dinner was held at the Northeast Moose Bar and Grill. Several restaurants from the neighborhood dropped off trays of food, while local bakeries made sure there was plenty of dessert.
From noon until 10 p.m., police officers, firefighters, EMTs and others serving the community stopped in for a well-deserved meal.
Sukhdeep Singh, owner of Curry Corner, was excited that his restaurant was asked to help provide food this year.
“I made sure that we are going to have more than what we need so we don’t run out,” he said. “(First responders) are the backbone of our city. Every time we get an opportunity, we want to be there to make sure that we are always giving back.”
His restaurant is one of several contributing to the annual Christmas Eve dinner at the Moose Bar and Grill.
Aileen Johnson is one of the organizers of the dinner. She said the dozens of volunteers live nearby. The restaurants and bakeries are all from the Northeast.
Johnson says it’s the neighborhood’s way of saying thank you.
“I think it really captures the spirit of the holiday to do for others and to think of others,” she said.
Watching police officers crack jokes and relax hits close to home for her.
“My late husband, Charlie Herzog, was an officer in the 5th Precinct and he worked many a Christmas Eve. And it was always a wonderful thing to know that he was getting a good hot meal, and not just a good hot meal, but a celebratory meal,” she said.
Hundreds of first responders were expected to attend.
Volunteers also delivered hundreds of meals to those who couldn’t make the trip, like 911 dispatchers, corrections officers, paramedics at nearby hospitals and Metro Transit.
-
Maine1 week agoElementary-aged student killed in school bus crash in southern Maine
-
Massachusetts1 week agoMIT professor Nuno F.G. Loureiro, a 47-year-old physicist and fusion scientist, shot and killed in his home in Brookline, Mass. | Fortune
-
New Mexico1 week agoFamily clarifies why they believe missing New Mexico man is dead
-
Culture1 week agoTry This Quiz and See How Much You Know About Jane Austen
-
World6 days agoPutin says Russia won’t launch new attacks on other countries ‘if you treat us with respect’
-
Minneapolis, MN1 week agoMinneapolis man is third convicted in Coon Rapids triple murder
-
Maine1 week agoFamily in Maine host food pantry for deer | Hand Off
-
Culture1 week agoRevisiting Jane Austen’s Cultural Impact for Her 250th Birthday