Minneapolis, MN
Minneapolis City Council approves contract formalizing nonprofit as evaluator of police reforms
The Minneapolis City Council on Thursday unanimously approved a contract with Effective Law Enforcement for All, officially greenlighting their work to oversee mandated reforms to the city’s beleaguered police force.
As the Independent Evaluator, the organization will have the power to determine when the city has achieved sustained, constitutional policing — as required under the state and eventual federal consent decrees. The process could take more than a decade, and cost up to $1.5 million a year.
Effective Law Enforcement for All (ELEFA), a nonprofit organization that specializes in reshaping police departments to reduce use-of-force incidents, was selected from a group of three finalists Feb. 2 following presentations before two packed community meetings. The group is led by David Douglass, deputy monitor for the city of New Orleans, which has been under a federal consent decree since 2013.
“Many communities across the country have had to deal with excessive force by police, killings by police, but none have been affected like Minneapolis,” Douglass told the Star Tribune last month. He touted his team’s experience in forcing systemic change and said they look forward to starting the work.
On Thursday, the Council passed the measure approving their contract 13-0 with little discussion.
“This is a fairly significant milestone,” said Council President Elliott Payne, noting that he has “all the faith and confidence in them” to dive into the investigative process and strengthen police protocols.
Following the murder of George Floyd in 2020, the Minnesota Department of Human Rights and the U.S. Department of Justice investigated the MPD and found over a decade of civil rights abuses, particularly against Black and Native American residents.
Minneapolis entered a court-enforceable settlement agreement with the Minnesota Department of Human Rights last summer. The Department of Justice is still negotiating terms of its consent decree with the city.
Within 90 days of assuming the job, ELEFA must come up with a plan to implement the first four years of reforms. If the U.S. Department of Justice is happy with their work, they may choose to retain them to oversee the impending federal consent decree. However, they have the power to install a new monitor and terminate that agreement.
“We will always only have one monitor,” City Attorney Kristyn Anderson told council members.
A provision in the contract also allows the city to terminate the agreement following a two-year performance review.
ELEFA’s team in Minneapolis will be co-led by Michael Harrison, a former Baltimore police commissioner and former superintendent of the New Orleans Police Department — the only chief in the nation with experience overseeing two departments under federal consent decrees, according to ELEFA’s application.
Members of the ELEFA team are slated to be in Minneapolis next week to meet with city and police officials, as well as select community groups.
Star Tribune staff writer Randy Furst contributed to this report.
A Minneapolis man who pleaded guilty to murdering a high school student in 2022 was sentenced to nearly 30 years in prison on Monday.
It was the second time Cody Fohrenkam was sentenced for fatally shooting 15-year-old Deshaun Hill. He was convicted and sentenced to more than 38 years in prison in February 2023, but the Minnesota Court of Appeals later reversed the conviction and granted him a retrial based on illegally obtained incriminating statements.
Fohrenkam, 33, agreed to a plea deal as his second trial was set to start, pleading guilty to one count of second-degree intentional murder in exchange for Monday’s 340-month sentence. The judge presiding over the hearing gave him credit for 1,476 days already served.
Fohrenkam shot and killed Hill while Hill was walking to a bus stop just blocks from Minneapolis North High School, where Hill was a star quarterback and honor roll student.
One of Hill’s aunts said in a statement shortly before the judge sentenced Fohrenkam that her nephew was “full of life.”
“When he spoke, you listened. He had a soft spirit and a good heart,” she said. “Deshaun was an artist who, as you all know, he took his education seriously. He had dreams and goals. He worked hard to make his family proud.”
This story will be updated.
A man is now charged with murder after prosecutors say a robbery inside a Minneapolis apartment building ended in a fatal shooting.
Prosecutors say the man was on conditional release after being charged with first-degree armed carjacking for an incident in Minneapolis last September.
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The killing happened Feb. 24 inside the Abbott Apartments lounge area on the 100 block of East 18th Street, where police found an adult man dead from gunshot wounds after reports of a shooting.
Court documents state the victim and a friend went to the building to meet 20-year-old Abdirahman Khayre Khayre. A witness stated Khayre left the room several times and appeared to be stalling before three armed men entered and demanded property. The men were described as carrying two Glock-style handguns with extended magazines and an AR-style rifle. During the robbery, the suspects demanded a Louis Vuitton bag belonging to the victim. When the victim resisted, a struggle broke out. The witness stated that two guns were taken from him during the robbery.
The witness told investigators Khayre was handed one of the stolen guns and then pointed it at him, causing him to flee into the lobby. Moments later, multiple gunshots were heard. The witness returned and found the victim shot. Surveillance footage from other areas of the building reportedly corroborated key parts of the account, and the witness later identified Khayre in a photo lineup, according to the complaint.
PREVIOUSLY: Man Shot and Killed Inside Minneapolis Apartment Building
Authorities say Khayre was on conditional release at the time of the killing in a separate Hennepin County case involving a September 2025 armed carjacking.
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In that earlier case, prosecutors alleged Khayre and others confronted a woman in a garage near 19th Street and Nicollet Avenue, pointed handguns at her and forced her to give up the keys to a Dodge Challenger before fleeing in the stolen vehicle. Officers later located the vehicle and arrested multiple suspects, including Khayre, who was identified as the driver.
Court records show Khayre posted a $75,000 non-cash bond and was released under conditions requiring him to remain law-abiding, have no possession of firearms or ammunition, avoid alcohol and controlled substances and complete treatment.
Khayre is now charged with second-degree murder without intent while committing a felony and first-degree aggravated robbery. He made an initial court appearance Friday, where a judge set bail at $1 million. If convicted of second-degree felony murder, he faces a maximum sentence of 40 years in prison.
The homicide investigation remains ongoing. Authorities have not yet released the identity of the victim. Anyone with information is asked to contact Minneapolis police by emailing policetips@minneapolismn.gov or calling 612-673-5845. Anonymous tips can also be submitted through CrimeStoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS or online. Information leading to an arrest and conviction may be eligible for a financial reward.
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