Sen. Al Franken also issued a statement following last night’s shooting: “Like all Minnesotans, I was horrified to learn about the shooting of five people outside the Fourth Precinct last night”. Clark was using crutches and says he will keep pushing for justice for his cousin, Jamar. Many activists said they are incredulous at the gulf between the two narratives, and even more so at the idea that the police narrative is to be most trusted. An officer who answered the phone at the 4th Precinct confirmed that shots were fired and said that there were no injuries or arrests. Police said Scarsella, Backman and Gustavsson are white, while Macey is Asian. Hennepin County District Attorney Mike Freeman said he plans to let a grand jury decide if criminal charges should be filed. None suffered life-threatening wounds.
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This story has been corrected to correct racial descriptions of the men in custody.
Vehicles in the procession from Jamar Clark’s funeral service to a cemetery honked their horns as they went past the protesters, who shouted “Justice for Jamar” in return.
Clark was shot by police at 12:45 a.m. on Sunday, Nov. 15 outside of an apartment on the 1600 block of Plymouth Avenue N. Officers were responding to a request for assistance from paramedics who reported that Jamar Clark was disrupting their ability to aid an assault victim. Inside, his obituary said the 24-year-old man “liked to swim, fish, listen to music, play basketball, be with family and take trips to Charlotte, North Carolina”. Howell said what’s needed now is a special state legislative session to address the needs of Minnesota’s minority groups.
“We’re here for Jamar”, one said, according to Henry Habu, who had been providing security for the demonstrators.
A Crowd Rise fundraiser for Clark’s family reached its $10,000 goal.
“I’ve been to too many funerals and I’m exhausted of it”, mourner Sheryllynn Wagner told reporters outside the church. The narrative of Tuesday night, they say, was that they managed not to retaliate against ongoing authorities provocation, although not that protesters were able to stay peaceful.
Law enforcement officials have not said whether they are investigating the shooting as a possible hate crime, but activists on Tuesday said the protests would continue and called again for the release of video related to Clark’s shooting.
However, police have not publicly linked any of the detainees to the video. The governor had previously said that a demonstration in which hundreds of angered protesters marched onto Interstate-94, blocking traffic, made him “very uncomfortable”.
Four men were being held on Wednesday by Minneapolis police as prosecutors weighed charges against them in connection with the shooting this week of five people protesting the fatal police shooting of an unarmed black man.
Family members of 24-year-old Jamar Clark also asked for no protests on Wednesday as he is laid to rest.
Protesters gathered in Philadelphia earlier tonight to stand in solidarity for the black teenager who was gun downed by police in Chicago and the Black Lives Matter protesters who were shot in Minneapolis.
Previously, the protesters had asked for an independent investigation into the shooting and the release of the names of the officers involved.
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Belton said the vigil should end to “restore order” to the community, which he said has endured open gunfire, traffic and service interruptions, smoke from the protesters’ fires and hours of helicopter noise.
