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'; Is that unusual for a big-city police chief? Minneapolis Police Chief Medaria Arradondo testified Monday that fired officer Derek Chauvin violated the department's use-of-force policy on the day of George Floyd's death. inline_cta_button_text_382199 = ''; He was expected to testify that Derek Chauvins use of force was contrary to department policy and training. Groves reported from Sioux Falls, South Dakota. The 53rd police chief of Minneapolis raised his right hand on Friday and swore an oath to uphold the laws of the city, state and nation. The prosecutor highlighted two items. In terminating the officers less than 24 hours after Floyd's death, Arradondo moved more quickly and decisively than his predecessors, who in some cases waited weeks or months to discipline officers for alleged misconduct and even then only after intense public pressure. Mohamed Noor, a Black officer, shot Damond while responding to the incident. I read that youre losing 3540 officers each year to retirement. Communities were less mobile and more tight-knit. Thats a great point. cta_2_check_382199 = true; In it, rays of a streetlight slice through the night sky. And service to my family members and neighbors was always something my parents instilled in us. I was sitting in my senior history class, and I was talking to a buddy, and there was a guy seated between us, asleep. When addressing the Philonise Floyd via CNN reporter Sara Sidner, he was seen taking his hat off, which is generally a sign of respect for the addressee. Thanks to the White House residents obsession with a Minneapolis congresswoman, the city has been a frequent target of his vitriol. But Arradondo, the MPDs first Black police chief, immediately distanced himself from the officers who killed Floyd, firing all four within 24 hours and calling their actions a violation of humanity live on CNN. So, yes, there is a little bit of added pressure. Sometime around noon on the day after George Floyd died while pleading for breath under a police officer's knee, Minneapolis Police Chief Medaria Arradondo summoned his top staff to a meeting in his office. And there are some who find it challenging when Im asking for additional personnel and resources. Mr. Arradondo joined the Minneapolis Police Department in 1989 as a patrol officer and was appointed chief of police in 2017 after his predecessor was forced out in the wake of a controversial. CNN's Sara Sidner speaks with Minneapolis Police Chief Medaria Arradondo at the scene where George Floyd was killed while in police custody. Among the many considerations facing Arradondo was weighing the potential fallout from firing the officers so quickly after the incident, Belton said. You knew your neighbors and they knew you. The chief said that during the restraint officers could not find Floyd's pulse. I went to Page Elementary School. Photo by Anthony Souffle/Star Tribune via AP. And, by the way, we get to see that every day. But I have to be determined to lead the charge in planting those seeds of culture change and make sure theyre cultivated. tn_loc:'atf' She is currently pursuing a PhD at the University of Minnesota, studying crime and law. In 2007, Arradondo was one of five black officers who sued former Chief Tim Dolan, alleging that he fostered a racially hostile environment. If you lose that, you may never repair it, may never get that back.. tn_author: ['alyssa-o', 'anna-d'], Sitting in the witness box, Arradondo, 54, described his long career with the Minneapolis police force, including his training in the department's first police academy class. Kroll, a long-standing target of local activists, retired shortly after the January 6 Capitol insurrection. As we get into the interview, I begin to see what draws people to Arradondo. Arradondo sat calmly behind the plexiglass, clearly at home in the system. And you left briefly after high school, right? }. In the wake of George Floyds death, protests against police violence were met with militarized, aggressive police. After a lengthy discussion, Judge Peter Cahill said that officers who weren't present at the scene of Floyd's death would have less leeway to express their opinions than those who had been present on the night he died. He took the right first step when he fired the police officers and hes been visible at press conferences. But what Im trying to communicate is that, one, I strongly believe, and the data supports it, that we need more. cta_2_check_382199 = true; You knew early that this was what you wanted to do? People have a bigger vision for what this city is going to be. The guy who buddies call Rondo worked his way up through the MPD ranks with stints on the beat in the Fourth Precinct, as the commander of Internal Affairs, and as assistant chief during the police shooting of Jamar Clark. "We had to do the right thing based on the information we had, but we also knew that this was going to really change the image of the department. This interview has been edited for length and clarity. Minneapolis Police Chief Medaria Arradondo said Monday that ex-cop Derek Chauvin violated department policy and training during his fatal encounter with George Floyd. if( is_user_logged_in != null ){ "There is an initial reasonableness in trying to get him under control in the first few seconds," Arradondo said, "but once there was no longer any resistance, and clearly when Mr. Floyd was no longer responsive and even motionless, to continue to apply that level of force to a person proned out, handcuffed behind their back that in no way, shape or form is anything that is by policy, is not part of our training and is certainly not part of our ethics or our values.". He's previously written forThrillist.com, Metro, and Minnesota Business. And it was interesting because they were associating myself in this profession with something that had happened across the country. Others, however, say the police chief is not doing enough. Arradondo took the helm of the MPD in 2017, nearly three decades after he joined. Hes in his mid-50s and has been a copa profession he himself admits ages folks in dog yearssince 1989. When I came in, the RFP for our pre-employment psychologist was up. if( inline_cta_text_382199 !='' ){ TAMMY WEBBER, AMY FORLITI and STEPHEN GROVES, Associated Press. if( inline_cta_2_bg_color_382199 !='' ){ cta_1_check_382199 = true; The officer, Lt. Richard Zimmerman of the department's homicide unit, said that restraining Floyd in the way the officers did and for as long as they did was "uncalled for." Late last summer, protesters wearing shirts that said Bob KKKroll Must Go! caravanned a half hour to his suburban neighborhood and took to the streets. I report to a mayor, who is an elected official. tn_articleid: [382199], if( is_user_logged_in != null ){ Arradondo said his department handles "a couple hundred thousand" service calls each year, not including officer-initiated police actions. Hes oddly magnetic, partly because of a youthfulness that flies at odds with his lifes work. Medaria Arradondo, the Minneapolis chief of police, talks about what cops get wrong, what Trump thinks about the city, and why he sits in on the interview for every single new hire. But they also faced efforts from the City Council to disband the police department altogether a move that was eventually blocked from appearing on November ballots. We need to make changes. if( cta_1_check_382199 ){ The state health department's database of homicides, suicides and other preventable fatalities is unique for demographic details, inclusion of police shootings. He said in the interview with BCA and FBI agents several weeks after Floyd's death that the gravity of what happened didn't sink in until after he watched the now infamous Facebook video of Floyd saying that he couldn't breathe after three officers got on top of him. } By 2 p.m. Frey tweeted news of the officers' firings, writing: "This is the right call. On Monday, Chief Medaria Arradondo of the Minneapolis Police testified in the trial of Derek Chauvin. In 2007, he filed a lawsuit against the department alleging racism, citing, for instance, a White Power patch worn by Lt. Bob Krolla white Trump ally and former president of the Minneapolis Police Federation. He decided he wanted to help change that, and after joining the department in 1989 has risen through the ranks to become the departments assistant chief and second-in-command. And a couple of gentlemen yelled something in reference to that. [16], During a 60 Minutes interview with Lesley Stahl which aired on June 21, 2020, Arradondo stated that there was distrust of law enforcement in Minneapolis's black community and that "we need good policing. But fast-forward to today, and more people are coming into the city and to places that were desolate. jQuery("#inline_cta_btn_382199").html(inline_cta_button_text_382199); Minneapolis Police Chief Medaria Arradondo said Derek Chauvin violated multiple department policies in his restraint of George Floyd. The prosecution has been calling a string of witnesses from the police department, including a senior officer who said Friday that Chauvin's actions were "totally unnecessary.". Your staunchest critics tend to be the ones that know you the best. At the time of Ms. Ruszczyks death, Chief Arradondo was the assistant chief. Ive got one shot to get it right, so I need to be involved in this. Chauvin, 45, is facing three criminal charges, as listed in court documents: A previous version of this story incorrectly referred to Derek Chauvin's defense attorney as George Floyd's defense attorney. And I was telling him I didnt really know what to pursue yet. You were born and raised in the city of your badge. ", "If I could do anything to bring Mr. Floyd back, I would do that," he said. document.write(new Date().getFullYear()); var inline_cta_text_382199 = ''; But he was criticized following Floyds death. Minneapolis Police Chief Medaria Arradondo AP The complaint also claimed that in 2007, the lieutenant gave all the plush overtime assignments to white cops after the collapse of the I-35W bridge. inline_cta_url_382199 = 'https://www.thenation.com/donate-website?utm_medium=website&utm_source=Website&utm_campaign=june-appeal&sourceid=1066666&ms=post-inline&utm_content=post-inline'; Arradondo has spent the months since Floyds death trying to transform a police department derided by critics as brutal and resistant to change, while fighting to preserve it from a liberal City Council that wants to replace it with a public safety unit or cut the number of officers. [5][6], During Super Bowl LII, Arradondo authorized banning Philadelphia-style tailgating. For the MPD chief, talking to a camera is a common occurrence. We know it's broken. Last December, Arradondo took to the podium to share inflated statistics about his departments use of helicopters in local police ops. The Minneapolis Police Department has been under fire since the death of George Floyd. The same policy also requires officers to consider whether a person's failure to comply with instructions "is a deliberate attempt to resist or an ability to comply" based on a number of possible factors, including mental impairment and medical conditions, as well as being under the influence of drugs or alcohol. Elie Mystal. That's after San Jose City Manager David Sykes made a . I took advantage of it. And I did not see a whole lot of officers who looked like me. Minneapolis Police Chief Medaria Arradondo testifies Monday in a Hennepin County courtroom during the trial of former officer Derek Chauvin, who faces three criminal charges over the 2020 death of George Floyd. "So I don't see a level of distinction any different. cta_2_check_382199 = true; inline_cta_2_font_color_382199 = '#ffffff'; He said at one point the mayor joined the meeting and the conversation briefly turned to the best course of action after people in the community saw the video. Bishop Richard Howell, of Shiloh Temple International Ministries, said that he and other leaders met with Arradondo around 10 a.m. on May 26, the day after Floyd died, when the chief told them he was torn about what to do. And then another. "I think it was extraordinarily courageous for him to do that, but I also don't think that it was based on community pressure it was based on personal conviction," he said of Arradondo's decision, while also crediting Frey for backing his chief. He said that by then it had dawned on him that Floyd's death was "going to be a significant incident for the city," according to the documents. It does. Police have no place in the abolitionist zone that emerged out of Floyds death, organizers say. In order to comment, you must be logged in as a paid subscriber. } Key Enterprises LLC. Dayton: Justine Damond shooting a tragedy, more information needed, Medical examiner: Justine Damond died from gunshot wound to abdomen, Tevlin: Where Justine Damond died, cameras roll too late, BCA: Officer heard loud noise before Justine Damond shot, Complete coverage of Justine Ruszczyk Damond's shooting, Minneapolis Public Schools' technology problems continue, Charges: Unlicensed driver extremely drunk in Minneapolis crash that killed other motorist, Maximum sentence given for murder of Mpls. It just so happened that the Airport Police Department started its first community officer program. That work wasnt to arrest or to overpolice. Reading from the police manual, the chief said that officers who are waiting for an ambulance to reach someone in a medical crisis "shall provide any necessary first aid consistent with MPD training, as soon as practical.". tn_ptype: 'article', What do communities get wrong about their police? Taking the witness stand Monday in the murder trial of Chauvin, Arradondo testified that one of his deputy chiefs called him at home last May 25 to tell him about the encounter with Floyd who hadn't yet been pronounced dead prompting Arradondo to contact Mayor Jacob Frey before heading to City Hall, where he watched footage from a city-owned camera. And when we talk about the framework of sanctity of life and we talk about the principles and values that we have, that action goes contrary to what we're taught.". Police are a historically defensive institution. During the second week of jury selection, Arradondo held another press conference. It seems like that opens the door to reshaping the force in a substantive way. There were 52 before me. jQuery("#magazine_button_382199").html(magazine_button_text_382199); Stephen Maturen / Getty Images file Link copied inline_cta_font_color_382199 = '#000000'; Arradondo appears happy to oblige each. It goes like that through most of the interview. ", Around the same time, Arradondo and Frey made it public at a news conference, where a clearly shaken Frey was more unequivocal, saying, "Being Black in America should not be a death sentence. The land around it is littered with empty cans and dry grass. "I would move heaven and Earth to do that. jQuery("#inline_cta_2_btn_382199 a input").css("color",inline_cta_2_font_color_382199); inline_cta_2_url_382199 = 'https://subscriptions.thenation.com/Nation_index?pk=G2A1C6M'; Race has become once again a paramount issue, Edwards said when the police chief took over. investigation into the incident. https://www.kare11.com/appredirect/\r Find KARE 11 on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KARE11/\r Follow KARE 11 on Twitter: https://twitter.com/kare11\r Follow KARE 11 on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kare11/ Does that bother you? By signing up to receive emails, you agree to receive occasional promotional offers for programs that support The Nation's journalism. Arradondo is reportedly Minneapolis's first Black police chief and his record in the department is nothing short of impressive. Arradondo, dressed in a pale blue police uniform, is the second witness of the day in Courtroom 1856. But not all of those involve crimes, he noted. tn_pos: 'rectangle_4', }. Kroll has bragged openly about his infamy: 54 complaints and 11 lawsuits to his name. As protesters continue to express their outrage,Minneapolis Police Chief Medaria Arradondo is tasked with listening to the public's demands and taking the proper action. The court appearances of several police officers in the state's case against Chauvin prompted a legal discussion at the start of Monday's proceedings over how much of the officers' opinions should be allowed in their testimony. His testimony framing Chauvin as a bad apple exemplified the individualizing ethos of criminal punishment, as Sarah Haley described it in No Mercy Here, her landmark study of the role of law enforcement in the establishment of Jim Crow. Theres not one seven-foot bronze statue honoring any of those chiefs, and there wont be one for me. Video of police killing the unarmed Black man has caused global outrage and has led to widespread protests,. I think that, unfortunately, there is a narrative that the work we do does not oftentimes have their best interest at heart. But the office also noted "other significant conditions," including fentanyl intoxication and recent methamphetamine use as well as heart disease. Here's why it matters today", "Mpls cop who once sued department now heads Internal Affairs Unit", "Officer charged with murder in shooting death of unarmed woman in Minneapolis alley", "The Latest: Mayor Nominates Arradondo as Minneapolis Chief", "Super Bowl security to outlaw Philadelphia-style tailgating in Minneapolis", "Minneapolis ends pot stings criticized as targeting blacks", "Citing racial disparities, Minneapolis police will stop low-level marijuana stings", "Report: Minneapolis Cops Urged EMS to Sedate Subjects", "Minneapolis mayor denies claim that he allowed unrest to overrun neighborhood, defends police chief", "George Floyd death tests Minneapolis police chief", "Minneapolis police chief on George Floyd's death: Not intervening to me you're complicit", "Minneapolis police chief announces new reforms, withdrawal from union contract negotiations", "Chief Arradondo Announces Immediate Withdrawal From Contract Negotiations With Police Union", "Chief: Minneapolis police resignations not a threat to public safety", "Minneapolis Police Chief Medaria Arradondo on George Floyd's killing, policies during protests and reform for his department", "Minneapolis Police Chief Medaria Arradondo, whose tenure included George Floyd's murder, will retire in January", "Q&A: Minneapolis Chief of Police Medaria Arradondo", "Day 6 Of Witness Testimony In Ex-Cop's Murder Trial; Defense Cross-Examine ER Doctor Who Tried To Save George Floyd", "Minneapolis taps first black police chief in wake of Damond shooting", "George Floyd death: Four Minneapolis officers fired after video", " 'Rondo' rose through police ranks to helm a department under pressure", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Medaria_Arradondo&oldid=1135614710, This page was last edited on 25 January 2023, at 19:55. 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