Category: Police
🦄 Police, Prison, Protest & Direct Action
Protest Outside Judge’s Home Calls For Cameras in Courtroom During Kim Potter Trial
Minneapolis, MN – A protest demanding justice for Daunte Wright and transparency in the courtroom was held outside the residence of Judge Regina Chu on Saturday, November 6. Community members and friends and family of Wright called on Judge Chu, who is presiding over the…
🦄 Police, Racism & Far-Right
Alonzo Ashley Memorialized at Denver Zoo
Denver, CO – Ten years after 29-year-old Black man Alonzo Ashley had a fatal encounter with Denver Police at the Denver Zoo, his family, friends, and the greater community finally received some justice. Although no criminal charges were ever filed against anyone involved, on October…
🦄 Police
Police Investigative Report Implicates Sheriff’s Deputies in Winston Smith Shooting
St. Paul, MN – The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) failed to redact the name of one of the deputies on the task force responsible for the killing of Winston Smith in a 1,000-plus page report they published in October 2021. [UPDATE: The name…
🦄 Investigative, Police
Private Mercenary Group Targets, Assaults, & Detains Anti-Police Protesters in Uptown Minneapolis
Conflict Resolution Group (CRG), the private security firm run by ex-mercenaries and hired by property owners, has assaulted, detained, threatened community members in Minneapolis.
🦄 Police
No Charges for Unnamed Federalized Deputies that Killed Winston Smith
Minneapolis, MN – The federalized undercover officers working on the task force that killed Winston Boogie Smith Jr., were exercising “lawful authority,” and will not face charges said Crow Wing prosecutor Donald Ryan in a letter made public on October 11, 2021. A press conference…
🦄 Police, Racism & Far-Right
Targeted: Young, Black, and Harassed in Downtown Minneapolis
Part 4 in the Series: 21st Century Jim Crow in the North Star City
🦄 Global, Police, Racism & Far-Right
One Year After George Floyd in Europe: The Deep Roots of Racism in Germany [Video]
In June 2021, Unicorn Riot went to Frankfurt and Berlin, Germany to show what impact the murder of George Floyd had in European countries. Germany is significant because it had the second biggest Black Lives Matter mobilizations in the world following the death of George…
Police in Brazil Killed Record Amount of People in 2020
An average of 17 people a day, totaling at least 6,416 people, were killed by police in Brazil during the year of 2020. These staggering totals set the highest amount ever recorded since tracking police killings in the country of over 211 million people. The…
Police Break Up Ceremony and Indigenous-Led #StopLine3 Occupation
St. Paul, MN – Thousands converged on the Minnesota State Capitol grounds on August 25 to demand that construction on the contentious Line 3 tar sands pipeline be stopped. A massive police response greeted the water protectors who held ceremony, set tipis up and attempted…
From Pain to Power: Twelve Years After Justin Teigen
St. Paul, MN – Toshira Garraway’s life was turned upside down following the death of her fiancé, Justin Teigen, twelve years ago. Teigen is the father of Garraway’s child and was 24 when he was found dead in a recycling center after an encounter with…
Judge Orders Sheriff to Halt Harassment of Line 3 Resistance Camp
Hubbard County, MN – On the morning of July 23, 2021, Minnesota 9th District Judge Jana M. Austad granted a temporary restraining order prohibiting the Hubbard County Sheriff’s Office from “barricading, obstructing, or otherwise interfering with access to the [Namewag Camp] property”—an Indigenous-led water protector…
Minneapolis Pushes Activists to Their Limits
Minneapolis has been ground zero for international outrage and seen nearly nonstop protests since Minneapolis police (MPD) murdered George Floyd over a year ago. Also since the murder of Floyd, the city of Minneapolis and the powers that be have shown contempt for protesters, with…
🦄 Police, Racism & Far-Right
Dorian Murrell: Killed During George Floyd Protests, Family Seeks Answers
Indianapolis, IN – The family of 18-year-old Dorian Murrell is still seeking answers a year after he was fatally shot in downtown Indianapolis while protesting the police killing of George Floyd. Although a man named Tyler Newby has confessed to the killing and has trial…
Hubbard County Barricades Private Property, Imprisons Water Protectors
Hubbard County, MN – At around 6 a.m. Monday, Hubbard County Sheriff’s deputies delivered a notice to the Namewag Camp, a privately-owned property of water protectors, stating that the sole entrance would not be “open to vehicular traffic per Hubbard County’s Land Use Ordinance.”
“The…
Ex-Cop Derek Chauvin Sentenced to 22.5 Years for George Floyd Murder
Minneapolis, MN – In a landmark ruling, Minnesota Fourth District Judge Peter Cahill sentenced convicted murderer and former Minneapolis Police officer Derek Chauvin to over 22 years in prison for the killing of George Floyd. This is now the longest sentence ever given to a…
🦄 Police
Unanswered Questions Fuel Protests Against Police in Minnesota
Minneapolis, MN – Since Winston Smith was killed nearly two weeks ago in a secretive federal raid, no video evidence or any names of officers involved have been released. Minneapolis has seen another wave of protests not only because Smith was denied due process and…
Car Attacker Who Killed Deona Marie Charged With Murder
Nicholas Kraus, the driver who attacked a Winston Smith protest, killing Deona Marie and injuring others was charged with second degree intentional murder and two counts of second degree assault with a dangerous weapon.
Woman Killed After Driver Slams into Winston Smith Protest
A driver rammed his Jeep Cherokee at a high speed into a car protecting a crowd of Winston Smith protesters on Sunday night, killing the parked car's owner and injuring two others. A mainstay at the near-daily Winston Smith protests, 31-year-old Deona Marie was pronounced dead from her injuries after arriving to the hospital.
Federal Task Force Kills Winston Smith Leading to Sustained Protests
Minneapolis, MN – Sheriffs deputized as federal agents ambushed and killed 32-year-old father of three, Winston “Boogie” Smith Jr., around 2 p.m. on June 3, 2021. Smith had just eaten lunch with a date when he was shot to death as he sat with her…
Greece: New Education Bill Brings a New Students Movement
Thessaloniki, Greece – A new generation of students is rising to fight a proposed education bill and raise their voice against the Greek government for what they call criminal mismanagement of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Universities in Greece have been closed since March 2020. In this…
‘Locks for Love’ 5-Day Occupation Sought Police Accountability
Minneapolis, MN – A five-day occupation demanding police accountability started the night of opening statements in the Derek Chauvin trial. Held outside and based on actions named ‘locks for love’, the occupation was led by Kaia Hirt, a high school teacher who chained herself to…
🦄 Investigative, Police
Shame Games: Minneapolis Police Mock Community Engagement Officer
Minneapolis, MN – Newly released body camera footage from officers in the Minneapolis Police Department (MPD) reveals a gang-like culture denigrating a central command community engagement officer. The videos also show a litany of micro-aggressions towards protesters, the general public and show the main aggressor,…
🦄 Police, Racism & Far-Right
Philly Commemorates 36th Anniversary of MOVE Bombing
Philadelphia, PA – Thirty-six years ago today, the Philadelphia Police dropped a bomb on a home in West Philadelphia that served as the headquarters of the Black liberation organization, MOVE. The bombing killed 6 adults and 5 children, burned down 61 homes, and displaced 250…
🦄 Police, Racism & Far-Right
Denver Students Organize Sit-in for Black Lives Lost to Police Violence
Denver, CO – On the evening of April 23, 2021, three high school seniors held an overnight sit-in outside the Colorado State Capitol to raise awareness around Black lives lost to police violence—most specifically 16-year-old Ma’Khia Bryant.
One of the students, Ashira Campbell, told Unicorn…
Aerial Surveillance in Twin Cities Frustrates, Alarms Residents
When protests broke out several weeks ago in a Minneapolis, Minnesota suburb over the police killing of Daunte Wright, tensions were already high thanks to the trial of Derek Chauvin, the police officer found guilty of murdering George Floyd. State and local authorities were ready…