In June 2020, following the murder of George Floyd, MDHR filed a charge of discrimination against the City and the Minneapolis Police Department (MPD) to investigate whether the City and MPD had engaged in a pattern and practice of racially-discriminatory policing in violation of the Minnesota Human Rights Act.

The City welcomed this investigation.

On June 8, 2020, the City and MDHR agreed to a temporary restraining order. It required several changes to MPD policy, including banning chokeholds.

Read the order

As part of the investigation, the City and MPD:

• Responded to numerous information requests
• Provided dozens of witnesses for interviews
• Produced thousands of pages of documents to the MDHR

On April 27, 2022, MDHR issued a report stating that it had determined that there is probable cause that the City and MPD engaged in a pattern or practice of race discrimination in violation of the Minnesota Human Rights Act.

See the findings of the investigation

After finding that there is probable cause that City and MPD engage in a pattern or practice of race discrimination, the MDHR and the City began working together to develop a court enforceable settlement agreement, to resolve the probable cause determination. 

On July 13, 2022, the City and MDHR agreed to a Joint Statement of Principles that guided efforts to reach a court enforceable settlement agreement that fall.

The City and MDHR agreed to work together to develop a framework to ensure lawful, non-discriminatory policing and to better support public safety in Minneapolis. To specifically focus on:

• Use of force
• Supervision
• Traffic stop enforcement
• Arrests
• Training
• Accountability and oversight systems including disciplinary systems
• The organizational culture within MPD
• Community trust
• Officer wellness and support
• Data collection
• Transparency

The City and MDHR will work together to include a method of assessing, reporting on, and compliance with the agreement.

See the joint statement of principles

The Minneapolis City Council and Mayor Jacob Frey approved terms of a court-enforceable settlement agreement. 

Read about court-enforceable settlement agreement

The DOJ issued a report about the City of Minneapolis and the Minneapolis Police Department. The report states that the DOJ has reasonable cause to believe that the City and MPD engage in a pattern or practice of conduct that deprives people of their rights under the Constitution and federal law.

Learn more about the DOJ investigation

Hennepin County District Court judge approved the settlement agreement and entered it as an order. The agreement's effective date is July 13, 2023.

The City and MDHR selected Effective Law Enforcement ALL (ELEFA) as the Independent Evaluator.

The City's current and upcoming activities include:

• The City is completing the procurement and contract process.
• Once the ELEFA team is on board, they will have 90 days to create an evaluation plan. That process will involve a lot of information gathering, data assessment, and community and officer engagement.