Police Officers Federation of Minneapolis files motion to intervene in federal consent decree

The Police Officers Federation of Minneapolis (POFM) has filed a motion to intervene in the federal consent decree that outlines sweeping reforms to the city’s police department.

According to court documents, POFM — the union representing sworn members of the Minneapolis Police Department (MPD) — states the consent decree could impact working conditions, employment terms and collective bargaining rights.

The group also said, in part, “The purpose of seeking intervention is to provide the Federation with the ability to present our concerns formally to the Court and to the representatives of the Federal government and the City of Minneapolis.”

The consent decree comes after a U.S Department of Justice investigation found civil rights violations by the city and police department. It also found that MPD was using unjustified deadly force against Black and Indigenous people.

On Jan. 6, the Minneapolis City Council approved the federal consent decree following an hours-long closed-door session.

If a judge approves the consent decree, it will require the city and Minneapolis police to follow the court order under the supervision of an independent monitor and will cover several areas of concern.

The goal is to get a judge to sign the consent decree by Jan. 20 — partly because Trump’s previous administration put limits on consent decrees.

The Minnesota Department of Human Rights has a separate court agreement with both the city and MPD, which requires officers to work to deescalate and ban officers from using force as a punishment.

Click here for KSTP’s coverage of MPD reform.

Read the motion to intervene in full below: