# Minneapolis Police Department *Municipal police agency of Minneapolis, Minnesota* The Minneapolis Police Department (MPD) is the police agency of the [[City of Minneapolis]], [[Minnesota]].[^1] It is the largest police department in the state. It was founded in 1867, and among Minnesota departments only the [[Saint Paul Police Department]], which dates to 1854, is older.[^2] Two government bodies, one state and one federal, have issued pattern findings concerning the department.[^3][^4] On April 27, 2022, the [[Minnesota Department of Human Rights]] found probable cause that the City and MPD engage in "a pattern or practice of race discrimination in violation of the Minnesota Human Rights Act."[^5] A court-enforceable settlement approved on July 13, 2023 ends only on a finding of "full, effective, and sustained compliance."[^6] On June 16, 2023, the [[United States Department of Justice]] found reasonable cause that the MPD "uses excessive force, including unjustified deadly force." On May 21, 2025, the same Department retracted that finding and moved to dismiss with prejudice.[^4] In June 2020, nine members of the Minneapolis City Council pledged to "dismantle the Minneapolis Police Department."[^7] The city charter gives the mayor "complete power" over the department and sets a staffing minimum of .0017 employees per resident.[^8] The MPD was not dismantled.[^7][^1] ## History Before 1867, the [[City of St. Anthony]] and the Town of Minneapolis relied on an appointed city marshal, based in St. Anthony and aided by constables. The marshal held arrest power but seldom exercised it. Sentenced offenders were sent to the Ramsey County Jail or the [[Stillwater]] Penitentiary until the Hennepin County Courthouse and Jail opened in 1857.[^9] The two municipalities merged and incorporated as Minneapolis in 1867. Mayor Dorilus Morrison named H. H. Brackett the first police chief, and six patrolmen policed roughly 5,000 residents. By 1884 the force had grown to 100 men.[^9] A Board of Police Commissioners operated briefly, from 1887 to 1890.[^10] A. A. Ames won the first of four nonconsecutive mayoral terms in 1876, and the national press called him "The Shame of Minneapolis." After his 1901 election he dismissed half the department, replaced those officers with political supporters, and named his brother, Frederick W. Ames, chief.[^9] The Wikipedia account states that the administration and police then collected protection money and "fines" from illegal businesses. According to that account, the proceeds were divided between the mayor and his associates.[^9] In May 2020, MPD officer [[Derek Chauvin]] knelt on George Floyd's neck for about 9.5 minutes. He was charged with and later convicted of Floyd's murder. The department's 3rd Precinct station had been destroyed by May 29, 2020.[^10] ## Racial discrimination A charge filed on June 1, 2020 began the Minnesota Department of Human Rights' civil rights investigation into the City and the MPD.[^11][^5] The Department's April 27, 2022 report found that 13 of 14 people killed by MPD officers since 2010 were people of color or Indigenous. It also found that Black residents, who were 19% of the city's population, accounted for 63% of recorded use-of-force incidents from 2010 to 2020 and 54% of officer-initiated traffic stops.[^5] The Wikipedia account cites police records for an unstated period and gives a lower share: 6,650 of 11,500 recorded acts of force, or 58%. The agency figure is 63% for 2010–2020.[^12] A [[New York Times]] analysis cited in that account found Black people seven times more likely than white people to be subjected to MPD force. The same account reports that Minneapolis police killed 35 people between 2000 and 2021, 23 of whom were Black.[^12] In 2001 the [[Minnesota Legislature]] considered requiring police to record drivers' race at traffic stops. The measure failed, and departments were instead offered incentives to join a voluntary data pilot. The MPD's 2003 report showed it was more likely to stop a non-white person, and the city under Mayor R.T. Rybak convened an audit of the department in response.[^12] ## Misconduct and internal affairs In 1989, acting on inaccurate informant information, officers raided the home of an elderly couple, Lloyd Smalley and Lillian Weiss. Flashbang grenades used in the raid set the house on fire. Police at first made no rescue attempt, and both residents died of smoke inhalation.[^13] In a 2010 drug raid on the apartment of Rickia Russell, a flashbang left her with third-degree burns. No contraband was found, and the City Council agreed to pay $1 million in damages.[^13] The city's Police Conduct Oversight Commission commissioned a 2016 study that sent undercover lawyers to test the complaint process. The study found that filing a misconduct complaint at most precincts or through online channels was difficult or close to impossible. The 4th Precinct in north Minneapolis had drawn scrutiny after the 2015 police shooting of [[Jamar Clark]] there.[^13] In one review period, more than half of 439 complaint cases were dismissed for being older than 270 days, and no officer was disciplined.[^13] ### Settlement and evaluation The state finding was followed by a court-enforceable settlement, filed on March 31, 2023 in *Minnesota v. Minneapolis Police Department*, No. 27-CV-23-4177.[^6][^14] [[Hennepin County District Court]] Judge Karen Janisch approved it on July 13, 2023. It terminates only on a finding of "full, effective, and sustained compliance."[^6] The [[independent evaluator]], ELEFA, began work on March 18, 2024. The Department of Human Rights maintains a document hub for the agreement.[^6][^15] ## Officers killed in the line of duty The Wikipedia account counts fifty MPD officers and three police dogs killed on duty. The first such death came in 1884, by gunfire, which accounts for 28 of the deaths in all. The most recent was in 2024: Officer Jamal Mitchell was shot and killed while answering a shooting call.[^16] ## Organization A chief of police and an assistant chief head the department. There are three administrative bureaus: Patrol, Investigations and Professional Standards. Each is led by a deputy chief. The Patrol Bureau assigns each of the city's five precincts to a commander holding the rank of inspector.[^8] The Wikipedia lead instead describes four bureaus reporting to the assistant chief.[^10] The charter places the department under the mayor's "complete power." By setting the staffing floor of .0017 employees per resident, it also limits how far the council can cut police funding.[^8] The force numbered roughly 570 officers as of 2024, down from more than 800 at an earlier, undated point. The Wikipedia lead gives an undated figure of 600 sworn officers and 300 civilian employees.[^8][^10] The Police Officers Federation of Minneapolis represents uniformed staff. Lieutenant Bob Kroll led it in 2020, and Sherrel Schmidt succeeded him in 2021.[^8] ## Other agencies The MPD is the largest of six police forces working in Minneapolis.[^17] The others are: - the [[University of Minnesota]] Police Department, with more than fifty sworn officers on the Twin Cities campus; - the Minneapolis Park Police Department, with thirty sworn officers and twenty part-time agents as of 2020; - the [[Metro Transit]] Police, with more than 100 full-time officers as of 2023; - the Metropolitan Airports Commission police; and - the [[Hennepin County Sheriff]]'s Office.[^17] After Floyd's murder, the university said it would stop contracting with the MPD for large-event security.[^17] ## In the Minnesota record ### What **Federal finding and retraction.** On June 16, 2023, the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division issued a findings report on the City and the MPD. The report found reasonable cause that the department "uses excessive force, including unjustified deadly force."[^4] A dossier summary of the Department's record states that a [[consent decree]] was filed in January 2025. On May 21, 2025, the Department retracted the 2023 finding and moved to dismiss with prejudice.[^4] The record here does not establish how the court ruled on that motion. **Council pledge and charter.** On June 7, 2020, at Powderhorn Park, nine council members, among them Jeremiah Ellison, pledged to "dismantle the Minneapolis Police Department."[^7] Council President Lisa Bender said the city should replace the MPD with a "transformative new model of public safety." [[Minneapolis mayor]] Jacob Frey opposed the plan.[^18] The city then acknowledged that its charter barred the council from acting alone. Any change needed either the mayor's support or a charter amendment approved by voters, and the charter also bars defunding the department.[^18] The department continues to operate as a city agency.[^1] **Federal action against the State.** On January 14, 2026, the Department of Justice's Office of Public Affairs issued release No. 26-21. Its title is *United States Department of Justice Files Lawsuit Against Minnesota's 'Affirmative Action' Regime*. Attorney General Pamela Bondi certified the case as a matter of general public importance.[^19] The release concerns the State. The record here does not tie it to the MPD, and it does not give the suit's docket or status. ## See also - [[Minnesota Human Rights Act]] - [[Minneapolis]] - [[At issue 024 - On June 16, 2023 the Department of Justice]] ## Notes [^1]: City of Minneapolis, *Minneapolis Police Department* (city agency page, undated) — the MPD as a department of the City of Minneapolis. https://www.minneapolismn.gov/police/ [^2]: Wikipedia contributors, *Minneapolis Police Department*, lead (rev. 1382018098, retrieved 2026-10-26) — largest department in the state; 1867 founding; Saint Paul department formed 1854. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minneapolis_Police_Department [^3]: Minnesota Department of Human Rights, *Minnesota Department of Human Rights* (agency site, as cited in project dossier) — April 2022 pattern-or-practice finding regarding the City and MPD, followed by a court-enforceable settlement approved in 2023. https://mn.gov/mdhr/ [^4]: U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division, *findings report on the City of Minneapolis and MPD* (June 16, 2023) and subsequent filings, as cited to the Department's site in project dossiers — reasonable-cause finding of excessive force; consent decree filed January 2025; retraction and motion to dismiss with prejudice May 21, 2025. https://www.justice.gov/ [^5]: Minnesota Department of Human Rights, *Investigation into the City of Minneapolis and the Minneapolis Police Department* (April 27, 2022) — charge filed June 1, 2020; probable-cause finding of a pattern or practice of race discrimination; 13 of 14 killed; 63% of use-of-force incidents 2010–2020; 54% of officer-initiated traffic stops. https://mn.gov/mdhr/assets/Investigation%20into%20the%20City%20of%20Minneapolis%20and%20the%20Minneapolis%20Police%20Department_tcm1061-526417.pdf [^6]: Minnesota Department of Human Rights, *Civil rights update on the MPD settlement agreement* (undated) — settlement filed March 31, 2023, approved July 13, 2023 by Judge Karen Janisch; termination on "full, effective, and sustained compliance"; evaluator ELEFA began March 18, 2024. https://mn.gov/mdhr/news-community/newsroom/civilrightsupdates.jsp?id=1061-584578 [^7]: Star Tribune, *Nine Mpls council members announce intent to disband police department* (June 7, 2020) — the Powderhorn Park pledge by nine council members. https://www.startribune.com/nine-mpls-council-members-announce-intent-to-disband-police-department/571088302 [^8]: Wikipedia contributors, *Minneapolis Police Department*, "Organization" (rev. 1382018098, retrieved 2026-10-26) — command structure; mayor's "complete power"; .0017 staffing floor; officer counts; union leadership. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minneapolis_Police_Department [^9]: Wikipedia contributors, *Minneapolis Police Department*, "History" (rev. 1382018098, retrieved 2026-10-26) — marshal era; 1867 founding under Brackett; Ames administration. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minneapolis_Police_Department [^10]: Wikipedia contributors, *Minneapolis Police Department*, lead (rev. 1382018098, retrieved 2026-10-26) — Board of Police Commissioners 1887–1890; four bureaus; 600 sworn and 300 civilian staff; 3rd Precinct destroyed; Chauvin conviction. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minneapolis_Police_Department [^11]: Minnesota Department of Human Rights, *Civil Rights Investigation into Minneapolis Police Department* (undated) — announcement of the Department's investigation. https://mn.gov/mdhr/news-community/newsroom/civilrightsupdates.jsp?id=1061-434480 [^12]: Wikipedia contributors, *Minneapolis Police Department*, "Racial discrimination" (rev. 1382018098, retrieved 2026-10-26) — 6,650 of 11,500 acts of force; New York Times analysis; 35 killed 2000–2021; 2001–2003 profiling data and Rybak audit. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minneapolis_Police_Department [^13]: Wikipedia contributors, *Minneapolis Police Department*, "Misconduct and internal affairs" (rev. 1382018098, retrieved 2026-10-26) — 1989 and 2010 raids; 2016 complaint study; 439 complaint cases. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minneapolis_Police_Department [^14]: Civil Rights Litigation Clearinghouse, *Minnesota v. Minneapolis Police Department*, No. 27-CV-23-4177 (docket) — case caption and docket number. https://clearinghouse.net/case/43326/ [^15]: Minnesota Department of Human Rights, *MPD settlement agreement* (document hub) — agreement documents. https://mn.gov/mdhr/mpd/agreement/ [^16]: Wikipedia contributors, *Minneapolis Police Department*, "Officers killed in the line of duty" (rev. 1382018098, retrieved 2026-10-26) — fifty officers and three dogs; 1884 first death; 28 by gunfire; Officer Jamal Mitchell, 2024. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minneapolis_Police_Department [^17]: Wikipedia contributors, *Minneapolis Police Department*, "Other agencies" (rev. 1382018098, retrieved 2026-10-26) — other police forces in Minneapolis and their sizes; university contract decision. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minneapolis_Police_Department [^18]: Wikipedia contributors, *Minneapolis Police Department*, lead (rev. 1382018098, retrieved 2026-10-26) — Bender statement; Frey opposition; charter limits on disbanding and defunding. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minneapolis_Police_Department [^19]: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Public Affairs, *United States Department of Justice Files Lawsuit Against Minnesota's 'Affirmative Action' Regime*, release No. 26-21 (Jan. 14, 2026) — lawsuit against the State; Attorney General Bondi's certification of general public importance. https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/united-states-department-justice-files-lawsuit-against-minnesotas-affirmative-action-regime