Minneapolis Police Department Officers Mark Ringgenberg and Dustin Schwarze were involved in the shooting, but it’s not clear who fired the fatal shot.
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Minneapolis Police Department spokesman John Elder said officers responded to the Monday night shooting and that dozens of officers assisted victims and secure the scene. Miski Noor, a spokeswoman for Black Lives Matter Minneapolis, said she arrived at the precinct about five to 10 minutes after the shooting.
The protests at the police precinct are in their tenth day following the shooting death of 24-year-old Jamar Clark.
Clark’s death, which is the latest in a series of unarmed black men killed at the hands of police in the United States, sparked demonstrations in the city’s small but concentrated minority community.
She continued: “The Governor’s statement also disturbingly calls into question the veracity of statements from witnesses who have already cooperated with state and federal authorities in presenting their versions of what happened and may deter other witnesses from coming forward out of fear of not having their stories be believed”.
Protesters have been calling for the release of videos of the incident ever since, but authorities say there is footage from multiple sources and that making the recordings public would compromise their investigations. He said, “We can be supportive”.
The governor said he saw Clark briefly, then again when he and one of the officers encountered each other. He declined to describe it, but did say that it doesn’t complete exonerate the officers or support claims that Clark was handcuffed.
Dayton, who met with Clark’s family and U.S. Rep. Keith Ellison, said that he would “urge that the tapes be provided to the family and released to the public, as soon as doing so will not jeopardize the Department of Justice’s investigation”. Some said they planned to stay and demonstrate despite the request from Clark’s family. Little has been released about the incident, and authorities say videos will not be released because they could “taint” witness testimony they have yet to obtain.
Releasing the footage would be “extremely detrimental to the investigation”, U.S. Attorney Andrew Luger said in a statement in association with the FBI and Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights. A visitation will be held at the church before the funeral, and both will be open to the public, McKnight said.
Dayton encouraged Clark’s family to meet with federal officials. The three strangers left the protest and a handful of protesters followed them to a street corner, where the masked men pulled out weapons and gunshots rang out, Omeoga said.
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The group sent a letter to Minneapolis Police Chief Janeé Harteau saying the police use of pepper spray, marking rounds and rubber bullets during some protests has been inconsistent and arbitrary, and has made the situation more chaotic than necessary.
