ar-AAOoLAJ

As a Minnesota judge is hearing arguments Monday on a ballot measure to replace the Minneapolis Police Department, a new investigative report found that in the months following George Floyd’s death, Minneapolis officers "imposed abrupt changes" of their own by taking a "hands-off approach" to crime.
Minneapolis officers almost immediately stopped conducting traffic stops, as violent demonstrations erupted across the city
Minneapolis officers also approached fewer individuals considered suspicious. After analyzing more than 2.2 million police dispatches in the city, Reuters found the number of individuals approached by officers who considered them suspicious dropped by 76% in the year since Floyd’s death on May 25, 2020. During that time, Minneapolis police stopped 85% fewer cars for traffic violations, meaning that fewer illegal guns were found and seized by law enforcement.
"It’s self-preservation," one officer who retired after Floyd’s death told Reuters
"cops grew less willing to risk their encounters with the public becoming the next flashpoint"
"There isn’t a huge appetite for aggressive police work out there, and the risk/reward, certainly, we’re there and we’re sworn to protect and serve, but you also have to protect yourself and your family,"
"Nobody in the job or working on the job can blame those officers for being less aggressive."
"Patrol units ignore minor violations when in the past they would have made stops to search for guns or drugs. Additionally, officers sometimes take longer routes when responding to calls in hopes that whatever violent situation was unfolding might have dissipated by the time they arrive"
"the average response time to priority 911 calls in April of this year was 40% longer than it had been a year earlier"
"The number of murders in Minneapolis is slated to reach a 20-year high, and the number of outdoor shootings has more than doubled since Floyd’s death"
"Anderson ruled on a civil lawsuit brought by three Minneapolis residents who argue they’re constantly needing police in their neighborhoods, which are battling unprecedented crime rates"