Category: Police
KARE 11 Outed a Whistleblower to the Minneapolis Police. He Killed Himself.
A Minneapolis city employee blew the whistle, and killed himself after he was identified and fired. Nearly six years later, there has been no official accountability nor substantive media coverage of this corrupt investigation.
Alan Ditty—union pipefitter, dedicated worker, son and brother*— died on March…
Protest After First Day of Kim Potter Trial Attacked by Car Driver
Minneapolis, MN – A person drove his car through a crowd of protesters outside the courthouse after the first day of the Kim Potter trial ended, injuring several people. A half hour before the car attack on November 30, a fourth juror was empaneled by…
Families of Loved Ones Killed by Police Demand Justice on Eve of Kim Potter Trial
Minneapolis, MN – Grieving family members impacted by law enforcement killings demanded accountability for police violence on the day before the Kim Potter trial began. A press conference was held Monday morning just blocks away from the Hennepin County Government Center and featured a dozen…
Daunte Wright’s 21st Birthday Brings Healing and Reflection
Brooklyn Center, MN – A celebration for what would have been Daunte Wright’s twenty-first birthday took place on Wednesday, October 27, 2021, at the Brooklyn Center Community Center not far from where he was killed by police six months earlier.
Friends and family, including Daunte’s…
Activists Target Target’s Cop Collaboration
Minneapolis, MN – Following the murder of George Floyd by Derek Chauvin, activists began blowing the whistle on Target Corporation’s unprecedented partnership with police, laying blame with the retail giant for Floyd’s death after years of funding racialized surveillance and draconian law enforcement.
“George Floyd…
German Police Evict Encampment Outside the Historic KØPI Squat
Berlin, Germany – A massive police operation evicted the autonomous mobile encampment “Köpi Wagenplatz” which took up residence in front of the historic and decades-old Köpi squat. Police detained 20 during the siege-like eviction which took several hours on October 15. In response, large protests…
Judge Chu Reverses Decision, Will Allow Cameras in Kim Potter Trial
Minneapolis, MN – Judge Regina Chu altered her previous ruling and has granted audio and video broadcasting of the Kim Potter trial, citing the surge in COVID-19 cases. The November 9 ruling (view below) came three days after a protest outside of the residence of…
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…
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 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…
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.
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…
Targeted: Young, Black, and Harassed in Downtown Minneapolis
Part 4 in the Series: 21st Century Jim Crow in the North Star City
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…
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…
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…