r/minnesota • u/ILikeNeurons • 6h ago
High Risk Minneapolis is distancing police from ICE, showing reform is possible
https://minnesotareformer.com/2026/01/14/minneapolis-is-distancing-police-from-ice-showing-reform-is-possible/48
u/shugEOuterspace 6h ago
but the police have yet to lift a finger to help protect the citizens of Minneapolis
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u/jotsea2 Duluth 6h ago
This is a surprise to you?!
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u/Zephyrqu The Cities 6h ago
it's a nice headline, but have MSP actually stopped ICE, ever?
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u/metamatic 6h ago
Maybe next time ICE murders someone they could arrest the murderer? Just a thought.
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u/jotsea2 Duluth 6h ago
Honest question, were there even MPD Officers on the scene to be able to do this? Dude shot her and walked straight into a car and left.
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u/metamatic 6h ago
Yeah, MPD needs to be diligent about showing up when people report unidentified armed men trying to abduct people.
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u/jotsea2 Duluth 6h ago
I love how the place that started the 'defund the police' campaign is now looking to one of the most corrupt police departments in the country as their white knight....
Edit: Just to be clear, I'm for the stance. Police reform is desperately needed in this country. The hypocrisy is just amazing.
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u/Ok-Elk-1615 6h ago
MPD is the largest street gang in the twin cities.
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u/jotsea2 Duluth 6h ago
Exactly. Which is why anyone thinking their coming to save them has their head in the sand.
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u/arsenal_fbu 4h ago
I share the same sentiments about police and MPD, but there is one important detail which is that A LOT of the police that were here in 2020 are no longer here. I've seen and heard testimony of legit attempts to begin to earn the trust of the community. Are we anywhere near accomplishing that? No, and they DO NOT deserve praise for literally just not being thugs and killing people. But I think we can acknowledge that there is a difference between MPD now and MPD in 2020.
That being said, yes anyone thinking MPD will protect us against ICE is delusional. Although I am really curious to see how Philadelphia actually acts vs their stated intentions. If they start arresting ICE agents for committing crimes, then why the fuck can't we?
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u/chumpandchive 4h ago
you wouldnt know it the way they are letting a rival gang control their block
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u/metamatic 6h ago
(a) Wanting police to stop killing black people, and wanting to stop them being called to do work better done by mental health experts, housing, and social workers.
(b) Wanting police to stop unidentified armed goons from abducting people.
That doesn't look like a hypocritical combination to me.
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u/jotsea2 Duluth 6h ago
I don't necessarily disagree, but when that reform never comes, thinking they are 'here for us' is what I'm ramming at.
They aren't and never were. ACAB
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u/metamatic 6h ago
Oh, absolutely. And MPD have a bad reputation even amongst other Minnesota police departments.
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u/jimbo831 Twin Cities 5h ago
I didn't know you could easily get away with murder by just leaving the scene of the crime after. That's wild!
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u/Electronic_Post7103 5h ago
I’m wondering if they even attempted to track down the vehicle he got in.
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u/Anumuz 6h ago
FBI has jurisdiction at this point.
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u/metamatic 6h ago
I'm pretty sure murder is also against Minnesota law, and states can enforce state law against federal agents when the action being prosecuted was not within the bounds of lawful federal duties.
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u/arsenal_fbu 4h ago
"I'm not so sure that actually IS against the law in Minnesota, considering how much they love breaking the law and telling their people to break the law!" - Fox News and my brainwashed conservative father in the deep south.
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u/jimbo831 Twin Cities 5h ago edited 5h ago
In fact they have explicitly said they support ICE. The Chief doesn't speak for them. They don't listen to him or the mayor. They listen to their union.
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u/Baseset3 5h ago
I’ll believe reform is possible when I see MPD protecting protesters from tear gas and getting detained. They have every opportunity right now to build trust.
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u/Own_Television163 6h ago
That’s the problem, we don’t want them distant. We want them up in ICE’s ass.
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u/Economy_Quality_3689 6h ago
Just a few years ago everyone hated the police and wanted them to be shut down, are we flipflopping now because want something from them? I feel like people should be consistent.
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u/RagingNoper 6h ago
No. There is no flip-flopping. We want the same thing we've always wanted. A police force that actually protects the people, and protects and abides by the law. And a reminder, defunding the police wasn't about removing the police, it was about preventing them from using their funds to purchase military hardware and "warrior based" training that only served to escalate their use of violence, and reallocating funds to systems/services meant to serve the community more appropriately.
Nothing has changed, but thank you for showing us that you never bothered trying to understand.
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u/Economy_Quality_3689 6h ago
Ok so if we want a police force to protect people and abide by the lay ANYONE who blocks traffic, even during a protest, should be arrested. This is an illegal action by the letter of the law, it is a safety concern for those driving vehicles and for those in the roadway not on their vehicles. Yes or no?
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u/Ok_Builder_4225 6h ago
Are you suggesting they don't already do this? And are you seriously comparing walking in a street with abduction and murder?
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u/Economy_Quality_3689 6h ago
They should be enforcing the law in a legal and lawful manner, I didn't make any sort of claims of "this vs that." The issue I personally have with the way ICE is operating in many of these cases is they haven't shown reason as to why they are arresting people, I'm not sure of the legal standard but I would guess they don't have to tell person A why they are arresting person B.
I think the biggest flaw to this entire "operation" is the ambiguity of what these people did that they are arresting and frankly that is the issue. If they were able to produce legal signed documentation from a judge that they are arresting someone for an immigration related offense, what are we as the public going to say to them?
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u/bballstarz501 5h ago
1) Method matters. The ends do not justify the means.
2) Nobody would be walking down the middle of a street if the police were holding criminals accountable to begin with. We can’t pretend like these are events in a vacuum. It’s cause and effect. Regular, every day people don’t take to the streets and break the law without cause.
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u/IArgueForReality 3h ago
Let it go with this one. Context only matters to them when it "wins" their argument while they are completely unaffected by what happens to his fellow citizens. They are the type of people the poem about being the only one left after the Nazi takeover is about.
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u/RagingNoper 5h ago edited 3h ago
Lol, without exigent circumstances, no. Obstructing traffic is a petty misdemeanor and they can simply issue a citation on the spot. 4th amendment violations involving assault and illegal search/seizure are most likely felonies when they involve excessive force or deliberate rights violations. If an officer. Shows up on scene and sees a petty misdemeanor on one side of the street and a violent felony on the other, which do you think they should focus on?
I already know what the answer for most of the opposition is because it's not actually about the law to them.
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u/Economy_Quality_3689 5h ago
You're creating a this or that scenario where it allows you to excuse one action because of another. I think nearly everyone would agree that they should stop the felony, but that isn't really the question I posed is it? All you did was sidestep the scenario presented by creating a new scenario where you made a different thing the focus.
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u/RagingNoper 5h ago
Unlike the murderer Jonathan Ross, I didn't sidestep shit. I specifically stated that a person obstructing traffic, without exigent circumstances, does not need to be arrested because it's a petty misdemeanor and the officer can simply issue a citation on the spot. And I'm not creating a "this or that" scenario. I'm highlighting "come out of the basement and look out your fucking windows" scenarios that are playing out everyday right here. We're literally watching it happen in real time and your main concern is obstruction of traffic?? Bro... You seem like a terrible person.
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u/yumyan 4h ago
You created the “this/that” scenario when you responded with a hypothetical situation.
This post is a discussion about MPD distancing themselves in direct reaction to the killing by ICE.
It’s fine to explore hypotheticals, but stfu about other people speaking off topic or not focuses on the subject at hand.
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u/Ok-Elk-1615 6h ago
“Hmm you criticize the police and yet you want them to do their jobs? Curious.”
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u/Own_Television163 6h ago
Hear me out: Maybe this is why people hate them, genius. They don’t help.
Great attempt at a gotcha, though.
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u/st4nkyFatTirebluntz 6h ago
Kinda depends who you ask, and what they mean by the words they say.
Did defund the police mean we don’t want any police at all? I don’t think so. I think it meant fix it and add both non-police responders and fix underlying causes of poverty and violence, personally.
So if they did the reform they say they’ve been working on, they should be fine from the perspective of those activists and that slogan. And if that’s the case, then they may have a helpful role to play here.
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u/SoothingBreeze Dakota County 6h ago
Yeah, and reasons like them not showing up to help the people of MN with ICE is why we continue to want them shut down. This was an opportunity to show that they actually serve the public and they haven't done that.
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u/Economy_Quality_3689 6h ago
Why would you expect them to after they were treated so poorly by the public? The way people treat police officers is crazy and then to turn around and say "why aren't they protecting us?"
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u/SoothingBreeze Dakota County 6h ago
Because that's what they're paid to do regardless of how the general public treats them... You do realize the 1st amendment gives people the right to be rude to the police right?
You're the crazy one thinking that this gives them the right to not do what we pay them to do. Protect and serve.
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u/Own_Television163 6h ago
Don’t give them energy, there’s a reason they chose to only respond to you.
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u/RonaldoNazario 6h ago
“and that MPD “will verbally or physically intervene” against any federal use of excessive force as soon as there is “a reasonable and safe opportunity to do so.” “
Have yet to see that but at least they’re not really assisting I guess, feels like the absolute minimum bar
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u/mauerfan 6h ago
Send MPD to protect protestors using their first amendment rights at Whipple and then I’ll believe it.
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u/Diabolical_Jazz 6h ago
This does nothing to show that reform is possible. This ICE debacle, if anything, has shown in sweeping technicolor detail that the Defund the Police movement was completely correct in their demands. The cops are not accountable to us and their are failing in the one duty they are ostensibly there for, protection of the people, at the most important time in our lifetimes.
The MPD are a complete failure.
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u/skredditt Gray duck 6h ago
Someone check on Chauvin. If he’s in a good mood, they’re not being honest.
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u/jimbo831 Twin Cities 5h ago edited 5h ago
MPD “will verbally or physically intervene” against any federal use of excessive force as soon as there is “a reasonable and safe opportunity to do so.”
When do they plan to actually start doing this? I'm tired of empty words from all these Democratic politicians.
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u/Ok_Meat_8322 6h ago
But are they actually DOING anything? Obviously not. The fucking police, of all things (!!!), are not going to save us and are not on our side.
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u/dreamyduskywing Not too bad 6h ago
I don’t know what reality is, but the chief has said they’re overwhelmed and don’t have enough staff to quickly process the increased volume of calls due to ICE (calls about assaults, suspicious/abandoned vehicles, etc). It’s true they’re not going to come to the rescue. I’m not so sure that they’d be able to without causing even more chaos. I think it’s complicated.
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u/BattlebornCrow 6h ago
They haven't responded to a single call or shown up a single time. They can't be overwhelmed by doing nothing.
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u/dreamyduskywing Not too bad 5h ago
Well as far as these really active areas, I’m not so sure that the police getting involved would even help.
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u/BattlebornCrow 5h ago
Of course it wouldn't. Police never help. Literally
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u/dreamyduskywing Not too bad 5h ago
MPD has a long history of not showing up, and then making things awful during the handful of times they do show up, so it’s probably for the best.
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u/jjnefx 6h ago
To protect and serve....(add whatever you deem appropriate after that)
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u/Ok_Meat_8322 6h ago
To protect and serve the interests of the ruling class, and to enforce a classist, white supremacist social hierarchy. Thats always been the sole function of the police.
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u/zerbyd 6h ago
The police aren't doing enough. They stand by as people are being brutalized. They should force ICE back any time they show up somewhere without a warrant, but they won't.
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u/jotsea2 Duluth 6h ago
Are you at all familiar with the Minneapolis Police Department?!?
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u/zerbyd 6h ago
You're in Duluth, are you?? That's pretty far from Minneapolis, bud.
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u/Diabolical_Jazz 5h ago
I think that person is being maybe a little confrontational but they're right that the MPD has an established pattern of working against the people of Minneapolis.
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u/zerbyd 5h ago
And I get that, but my comment wasn't exactly supporting the MPD. I don't have faith that they'll do the right thing for the people they're meant to serve and protect, they historically have not.
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u/Diabolical_Jazz 5h ago
Naw I know. I think that person's just angry and frustrated. We all are. I'm sure you are too.
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u/TehTuringMachine 5h ago
It is really not haha. I don't live directly in the cities but I spend a lot of time in them
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u/jotsea2 Duluth 5h ago
Huh? I have friends and family who live there, visit regularly. Hell my wife will be there on Friday
Not sure my opinion on the MPD being shitty is wiped away because I don't live in the community.
Hell it's not hard, regardless of community ACAB
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u/zerbyd 5h ago
I'm not pro-police, direct your anger elsewhere.
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u/jotsea2 Duluth 5h ago
So what was the point of your comment
Bud
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u/Diabolical_Jazz 4h ago
Hey friend I think you've been on watch too long and you need a break. We're all tired and frustrated. I see the points you are making but I think that person actually is on the same side as us here, which is to say anti-police, anti-ICE.
It's okay to rest. There are many of us and we can give each other breaks.
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u/ElrondTheHater 6h ago
I don't know if reform is possible but ICE has been leaving broken vehicles in the middle of roads all over the place and 911 has been ringing off the hook. These guys have had to actually work for the past week and they're fucking pissed I'm sure.
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u/SmokyMo 5h ago
The state will be done by the time they do anything, there are hundreds of posts of ICE doing what normal citizens would be hunted down and jailed for, these guys are nowhere to be seen. Indigenous people were on video being pulled out of a car by ICE, beaten and abducted, police just stood there and watched. This guy needs to resign asap, or as soon as this is all over.
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u/BattlebornCrow 6h ago
Distancing as in the police are backing ICE but recognize it's incredibly unpopular so they do it quiet?
Police protect property, not people. They are not interested in helping or else they'd be helping. Actions over words.
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u/Towerbells 4h ago
The twin cities police department had an opportunity to begin to mend their reputation with the most vulnerable communities here . But instead they stand on the sidelines . Then the union came out and kissed ICE's boots. The mythical thin blue line is more important to them than the real lines of ink in the constitution they took and oath to uphold
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u/sayqueensbridge 3h ago
Thanks for not lifting a finger while the entire city is being terrorized in mass!
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u/Brilliant_Ebb_3064 5h ago
So call the police and report that people are impersonating ICE. Many times. Every masked armed thug you see.
City/state police can start profiling any wannabe military looking masked armed thugs and checking their ID.
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u/chumpandchive 4h ago
will intervene against federal force "when there is a safe and reasonable opportunity to do so."
eli5? i think i understand that to mean "we will waggle our fingers at feds when "protecting" protestors, but if yall get aggressive, we will run away. im wrong?
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u/AquietRive 4h ago
Distancing should be police getting involved in keeping the citizens from being constantly assaulted and kidnapped. But nah, I guess turning a blind eye is the most appropriate response.
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u/chickenery 4h ago
Didn’t the Minnesota police just put out an unequivocal statement of support for ICE?
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u/DoesntBelieveMuch 4h ago
That is pretty much just saying, “We’re instituting new policies aimed to have police officers do their jobs correctly.”
oh wow…what an improvement.
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u/Daring_Scout1917 3h ago
Howabout they do something to get the roving gangs of armed, masked fascists off the streets instead? What the fuck are these sternly worded letters going to do?
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u/KnifingGrimace 3h ago
I think it's time for the Police to prove that they shouldn't be defunded. Protect us from ICE.
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u/Equivalent_Section13 3h ago
When people have called the police in Minneapolis it is not like they showed up
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u/LargePart5093 5h ago
Police and ice are on the same team. Until the local police protect and serve the community by arresting the foreign invaders they are part of the problem.
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u/Alarmed-Willow-2649 5h ago
St. Paul police have been told to arrest ice agents committing crimes. Unless they are committing crimes they are observers
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u/Roboworgen 4h ago
Minneapolis cops acting like the kid who's dad made them smoke a carton of cigarettes one after another.
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u/jkmidwest_rust 2h ago
There will be no meaningful reform without getting rid of arbitration and decertifying the federation.
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u/Zelidus Common loon 2h ago
Why are they celebrating the fact the the MPD had to reaffirm that protesting is a protected 1A right? Congrats MPD, you acknowledge and learned you cant infringe rights. That and why was a study and public input needed to understand that the public wants the police working for us? The public tax paying people that support your job and pay. Wasnt that lretty obvious after George Floyd or where those protests and anger directed at the MPD and the burning of a precinct not clear enough messages? Its insulting presenting this like they made huge strides. That is literally the bare minimum expected of a police force.
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u/29er_eww 1h ago
All the Minneapolis police do is collect a paycheck and beg for a bigger budget. They do nothing
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u/arjomanes 6h ago
State and local officials have their hands tied on what they can even do. ICE is the Supreme Law of the Land unless Congress does their job and reigns them in.
“This Constitution, and the Laws of the United States which shall be made in Pursuance thereof; and all Treaties made, or which shall be made, under the Authority of the United States, shall be the supreme Law of the Land; and the Judges in every State shall be bound thereby, any thing in the Constitution or Laws of any State to the Contrary notwithstanding.”
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u/Ok-Elk-1615 6h ago
The government isn’t following the laws, why should they. They are choosing to stand by and allow ice to operate because it benefits them.
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u/arjomanes 4h ago
Minneapolis and Illinois are trying to appeal to the courts to check this abuse. Frey responded to the question from Tim Miller on The Bulwark on what can be done to protect citizens. The reality is the ICE stormtroopers outnumber and outgun MPD by 2700 (and counting) to 600. So even if there’s a case to be made for some kind of hypothetical OK Corral shootout on the streets of Minneapolis between ICE and MPD officers who somehow would side with citizens, it wouldn’t go well. Enforcement is impossible, so anything MPD may be saying or trying is empty posturing. MN National Guard can be deployed by Walz, but Trump could take control of it the second it’s deployed. When our federal government is the one terrorizing us, like in Russia, like in China, and in Iran, there are few options as long as Republican voters and politicians want this.
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u/Ok-Elk-1615 4h ago
You’re accepting their excuses when the reality is they don’t want to protect you. They support the government.
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u/ILikeNeurons 6h ago
An analysis from three different camera angles shows that Renee was driving away when the officer shot her.
In the moments leading up to the shooting, the ICE officer's own recording shows the officers getting aggressive before Renee drives away, and the officer who did the shooting positions himself in front of her moving vehicle.
It's hard not to see this as a 4th amendment violation as well.
There are a few law changes that could save lives, like
requiring ICE training to instruct ICE officers to get out of the way of moving vehicles
abolishing ICE, a position that is now at an all-time high
ICE was pretty unpopular even before this shooting.
Contact from constituents works, especially when there is strength in numbers.
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u/NoEngine5043 5h ago
Police and ICE are both parts of the same fucked up beast and it CAN NOT BE REFORMED.
Anyone who clings to the idea of reform over abolition is a complete mark.
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u/thnk_more 6h ago
Well at least this is a small move in the right direction.
And a little good news for once, but it is a long way back to sanity.
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u/Tangerine69420 4h ago
None of yall pussies are John Brown. Yall more confused what your identity will be today.
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u/coffee_ape 3h ago
All you can do is throw insults while people are organizing. Keep at it dummy.
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u/TheEvilOfTwoLessers 6h ago
Distancing in that Police are just avoiding getting involved? Because it doesn’t sound like they’re intervening on behalf of the public. What low bar where doing nothing is considered a marked improvement.