Cop, police chief resign 2 days after Black motorist's death
Brooklyn Center (Minnesota): A white police officer who fatally shot a Black man during a traffic stop in a Minneapolis suburb resigned Tuesday, as did the city's police chief moves that the mayor said he hoped would help heal the community and lead to reconciliation after two nights of protests and unrest.
But police and protesters faced off once again after nightfall Tuesday, with hundreds of protesters gathering again at Brooklyn Center's heavily guarded police headquarters, now ringed by concrete barriers and a tall metal fence, and where police in riot gear and National Guard soldiers stood watch. Murderapolis was scrawled with black spray paint on a concrete barrier.
Whose street? Our street! the crowd chanted under a light snowfall.
About 90 minutes before the curfew deadline, state police announced over a loudspeaker that the gathering had been declared unlawful and ordered the crowds to disperse. That quickly set off confrontations, with protesters launching fireworks toward the station and throwing objects at police, who launched flashbangs and gas grenades, and then marched in a line to force back the crowd.
You are hereby ordered to disperse, authorities announced, warning that anyone not leaving would be arrested. The state police said the dispersal order came before the 10 p.m. curfew because protesters were trying to take down the fencing and throwing rocks at police. The number of protesters dropped rapidly over the next hour, until only a few remained. Police also ordered all media to leave the scene.
The resignations from Officer Kim Potter and Police Chief Tim Gannon came two days after the death of 20-year-old Daunte Wright in Brooklyn Center. Potter, a 26-year veteran, had been on administrative leave following Sunday's shooting, which happened as the Minneapolis area was already on edge over the trial of an officer charged in George Floyd's death.
Brooklyn Center Mayor Mike Elliott said at a news conference that the city had been moving toward firing Potter when she resigned. Elliott said he hoped her resignation would bring some calm to the community, but that he would keep working toward full accountability under the law.
We have to make sure that justice is served, justice is done. Daunte Wright deserves that. His family deserves that, Elliott said.
A decision on whether prosecutors will charge Potter could come as soon as Wednesday. Meanwhile, the cities of Brooklyn Center, Minneapolis and St. Paul imposed 10 p.m. curfews.
Gannon has said he believed Potter mistakenly grabbed her gun when she was going for her Taser. She can be heard on her body camera video shouting Taser! Taser! However, protesters and Wright's family members say there's no excuse for the shooting and it shows how the justice system is tilted against Blacks, noting Wright was stopped for an expired car registration and ended up dead.
Activists who attended the mayor's news conference called for sweeping changes to the Brooklyn Center Police Department and sharply criticized the acting police chief, Tony Gruenig, for not yet having a plan.
Elliott said the department has about 49 police officers, none of whom live in Brooklyn Center. He said he didn't have information on racial diversity at hand but that we have very few people of color in our department.
The modest suburb just north of Minneapolis has seen its demographics shift dramatically in recent years. In 2000, more than 70 per cent of the city was white. Today, a majority of residents are Black, Asian or Hispanic.
After stopping Wright for the expired license plates, police tried to arrest him on an outstanding warrant. The warrant was for his failure to appear in court on charges that he fled from officers and possessed a gun without a permit during an encounter with Minneapolis police in June.
Body camera footage released Monday shows Wright struggling with police when Potter shouts, I'll Tase you! I'll Tase you! Taser! Taser! Taser! She draws her weapon after the man breaks free from police outside his car and gets back behind the wheel.
After firing a single shot from her handgun, the car speeds away, and Potter says, Holy (expletive)! I shot him.
Wright died of a gunshot wound to the chest, according to the medical examiner.
Protests began within hours.
In her one-paragraph letter of resignation, Potter said, I have loved every minute of being a police officer and serving this community to the best of my ability, but I believe it is in the best interest of the community, the department, and my fellow officers if I resign immediately."
Wright's father, Aubrey Wright, told ABC's Good Morning America that he rejects the explanation that Potter mistook her gun for her Taser.
I lost my son. He's never coming back. I can't accept that. A mistake? That doesn't even sound right. This officer has been on the force for 26 years. I can't accept that, he said.
Chyna Whitaker, mother of Daunte's son, said at a news conference that she felt police stole my son's dad from him.
The Minnesota Police and Peace Officers Association said in a statement Tuesday that no conclusions should be made until the investigation is complete.
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Rahul Gandhi unveils 5 poll guarantees for Kerala, targets PM Modi and CM Vijayan
Thiruvananthapuram (PTI): In a high-stakes campaign here, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Saturday combined five populist electoral pledges with a fierce assault on Kerala’s ruling Communists, alleging Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan is being "controlled" by Narendra Modi in the same manner Donald Trump exerts influence over the Prime Minister.
Speaking at the valedictory function of the state-wide ‘Puthuyuga Yatra’ led by Leader of Opposition V D Satheesan as part of the Congress-led UDF’s preparations for the upcoming Assembly elections, Gandhi said, “The same way Trump is controlling Modi, the Prime Minister is controlling the Chief Minister of Kerala."
Announcing five guarantees for the people of poll-bound Kerala, he said, “The first guarantee is free travel for all women in KSRTC buses."
The other guarantees announced by him were a monthly financial assistance of Rs 1,000 for college-going girl students, increase of welfare pension to Rs 3,000 per month, a new health insurance scheme worth Rs 25 lakh coverage for every household in the name of former chief minister Oommen Chandy and interest-free loans of up to Rs 5 lakh for youngsters who want to start businesses.
In addition, he said a dedicated ministry would be created for the welfare of senior citizens.
Launching a scathing attack on Pinarayi Vijayan, Gandhi said PM Modi is "controlling the Chief Minister".
He alleged that even CPI(M) workers were aware of this and would admit it.
“I want to understand why the CBI and ED take action against opposition politicians but do not take action against the Chief Minister of Kerala,” he said.
Gandhi said there were 36 cases against him and that he was interrogated by the Enforcement Directorate for 55 hours.
“Why has the ED taken no action against the Chief Minister and his family? The reason is they are working together,” he alleged.
According to him, in Kerala, it was not the CPI(M) and BJP, but the “CJP” that was working together to defeat the UDF.
Gandhi also accused the LDF government of "functioning in the interests of big corporates".
“This is the most corporatist government Kerala has ever seen. It is against the interests of workers, small businesses and farmers and is working for the interests of the biggest businessmen,” he alleged.
He said the CPI should be renamed the “Corporate Party of India”.
“At least stand for what you say you are,” he said.
Referring to the alleged gold theft at Sabarimala temple, Gandhi claimed that the investigation was prevented from reaching the top leadership.
“Don’t worry, we will take strict action against those who dishonoured Sabarimala."
He also alleged that the LDF government had created a serious unemployment situation in the state.
“Modi has destroyed the employment system in India and the CPI(M) has destroyed it in Kerala,” he said.
Taking on the Centre, Gandhi alleged that the Prime Minister had “let the country down”.
“He has betrayed the country,” Gandhi said.
He said he was using the word deliberately and believed the Prime Minister had "betrayed the country" by signing the trade deal with the United States.
Gandhi claimed that the consequences of the agreement would be borne by the people of India.
“No Prime Minister before him opened our agriculture to American agriculture. Large American mechanised firms are going to compete with small Indian labour-intensive firms,” he said.
He said the deal would lead to devastation for farmers cultivating crops such as cotton, corn, pulses, fruits and soybeans.
Gandhi also claimed that the Prime Minister had "compromised" the country’s energy security.
“Imagine the Prime Minister of India committing to President Trump that we will buy oil from where America wants us to. Imagine a country as powerful as ours having to take permission from the US if we want to buy oil from Russia,” he said.
Referring to the trade deal, he said the US could extract data from India, which he described as the "most valuable asset" in the era of artificial intelligence.
“AI is all about data and India, with 1.4 billion people, is the largest producer of data. All of it has been signed away by Prime Minister Modi,” he alleged.
Earlier in the day, during a dialogue with the Information Technology (IT) Fraternity at Technopark here, Gandhi said that if India had said that its data was the most valuable in the world, there would have been no taxes on agriculture or on small and medium businesses.
He claimed that, except him speaking out against it, there was "not a peep" in India when its data was "handed over" to the US as part of the deal signed by the central government.
During his interaction with the tech professionals, the LoP in Lok Sabha also said that China has built a "superb and unmatched" industrial system in the world, but the neighbouring nation was "coercive and undemocratic".
He was also concerned that China dominated the electric motors and batteries technology which saw wide usage in the Ukraine-Russia war and the ongoing conflict in West Asia.
"That is a huge problem," he said, adding that he was confident that if aligned properly, an Indian company can take on the Chinese in that space.
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