Minneapolis, MN
Bill would give $1 million to nonprofit run by violence interrupter whose Minneapolis contract was pulled after shootout, threats
McAfee said the Salem contract has been tabled until the city finishes an investigation. Regarding the shootout, he said his violence interruption worker had just gotten off work when 30 shots were fired so he got his gun from his car and shot back. He noted the worker, Kashmir Khaliffa McReynolds, was struck in his neck, back and shoulder. He says that shows the danger of the job, since violence interrupters aren’t allowed to carry weapons.
The bill was laid over for possible inclusion in a larger bill later this session.
Champion has sponsored numerous bills directing funds to nonprofits in his north Minneapolis district, including many that were part of a $1.1 billion package that lawmakers sent to hundreds of nonprofits in 2023. As chair of the jobs committee in 2023, when the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party controlled the Legislature and governor’s office, Champion oversaw more than $300 million in direct allocations to nonprofits.
Rather than go through the typical process of competing for state grants, nonprofits were directly named in budget bills in what are called legislatively named grants.
It won’t be easy to get the bill passed this year, with the House evenly split between Democrats and Republicans and Democrats in control of the Senate by just two seats. Some Republican lawmakers recently called for an end to such earmarks, saying they don’t have enough oversight.
Both competitive and legislatively named grants are supposed to get the same state oversight, but the Office of the Legislative Auditor has found that agencies are more lax in their oversight of legislatively named grants.
Minnesota is investing nearly $5 million to expand E15 availability, a blend of gasoline with up to 15% ethanol, while federal rules and carmaker guidance limit its use. FOX 9’s Corin Hoggard details what you need to keep in mind before making the switch.
Minneapolis, MN
Minneapolis City Council to hear public comments on effort to repeal adult bathhouse ban
Minneapolis, MN
Search for permanent Minneapolis police chief has not started yet, commissioner says
Minneapolis leaders say police reform work is continuing as the city prepares to start its search for a new permanent police chief.
The city has said little publicly about the search for a new permanent Minneapolis Police Department (MPD) chief since Chief Brian O’Hara resigned more than two weeks ago.
Brian O’Hara resigns as Minneapolis police chief after report shows he interfered with investigation into his conduct
5 EYEWITNESS NEWS asked for an update alongside a new progress report on state-mandated reform efforts released on Thursday from city public safety leaders, including Community Safety Commissioner Todd Barnette and MPD Bureau Chief Ganesha Martin, who said they are confident reform work will not slow down after O’Hara’s resignation.
“Not at all,” said Martin. “So, Chief Peterson has been highly engaged, very open, curious, wanting to make sure to get up to speed on all the things that we’re doing.”
“The majority of the process is already in place, so I don’t think that it impacts the work that’s being done,” said Barnette.
What happens next?
Barnette also addressed whether ongoing mandated reforms could affect the city’s ability to hire a new chief. He said the work ahead is significant, but said he believes it will still draw interest.
“It’s a heavy lift, but having transformational reform that we’re institutionalizing here in the city is exciting work to do,” said Barnette. “So, I think we’re going to attract a lot of candidates. I don’t think that’s going to persuade anybody from not coming.”
Barnette said the hiring process is still in its early stages, adding that city leaders are still deciding what the search will look like.
“We’re still, we’re not even two weeks in with Chief Peterson yet,” said Barnette.
“We’re just going through, looking at what we did in the former search, what things that the mayor wants to see in this search, and then what input we’re going to get along the way,” said Barnette.
Has the search started?
When asked whether the official search had started, Barnette said no. He also said the city has not started talking to people yet.
The fourth quarterly progress report from independent monitor Effective Law Enforcement for All (ELEFA) also called the hiring of a new chief “an opportunity.” The report found “significant weaknesses” in the former chief’s review process for misconduct investigations.
Barnette said the city will begin the official search for a permanent chief “pretty soon.”
Below is a statement from Interim Chief Bill Peterson on the release of the fourth ELEFA report:
You can view the full ELEFA report below:
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