[St. Paul, MN] The Minnesota Department of Human Rights, the state’s civil rights enforcement agency, today issued the following statement following news that the U.S. Department of Justice filed a motion to dismiss the proposed federal consent decree with the City of Minneapolis (City) and the Minneapolis Police Department (MPD):

“While the Department of Justice walks away from their federal consent decree nearly five years from the murder of George Floyd, our Department and the state court consent decree isn’t going anywhere,” said Minnesota Department of Human Rights Commissioner Rebecca Lucero. “Under the state agreement, the City and MPD must make transformational changes to address race-based policing. The tremendous amount of work that lies ahead for the City, including MPD, cannot be understated. And our Department will be here every step of the way.”

State court enforceable agreement

In March 2023, the Department of Human Rights and the City reached and filed a court enforceable agreement. In July 2023, Hennepin County District Court Judge Karen Janisch approved the agreement, State of Minnesota by Rebecca Lucero, Commissioner of the Minnesota Department of Human Rights, vs. City of Minneapolis, Court File No. 27-cv-23-4177.

The state court enforceable agreement is the result of the Department of Human Rights’ investigation into the City and MPD, which was immediately launched following the murder of George Floyd. The investigation found the City and MPD engage in a pattern or practice of race discrimination in violation of Minnesota’s civil rights law.

The state court enforceable agreement addresses the findings by requiring the City and MPD to make transformational changes to their organizational culture by recognizing the humanity and civil rights of community members, addressing race-based policing, and strengthening public safety.

The agreement contains many provisions that are based on what Minneapolis community members and MPD officers shared during extensive engagement conducted by the Department of Human Rights.

Effective Law Enforcement for All, the independent evaluator for the state court enforceable agreement, recently issued its latest semi-annual progress report. The report and the Department of Human Rights’ letter responding to the report is available on Effective Law Enforcement for All’s website.

The court is the only entity that can terminate the state court enforceable agreement once it determines that the City and MPD have reached full, effective, and sustained compliance with the terms of the agreement.