Minneapolis Police Department
The Minneapolis Police Department (MPD) is the primary law enforcement agency in Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States. It is also the largest police department in Minnesota. Formed in 1867, it is the second-oldest police department in the State of Minnesota, after the Saint Paul Police Department that formed in 1854. A short-lived Board of Police Commissioners existed from 1887 to 1890.
The modern department is organized into four bureaus all reporting to the Assistant Chief of Police Mike Kijos, who then reports to the Chief of Police Medaria Arradondo. The city is divided into five precincts with 800 sworn officers and 300 civilian employees. As of May 29, 2020, the department’s 3rd precinct station was destroyed. At the city's population peak, the MPD served over 521,000 people, and today serves over 430,000 people as of the last census estimate.
MPD answers about four hundred thousand calls a year for service and does fifty thousand proactive stops a year. In comparison Hennepin Emergency Medical Services answers 60,000 calls a year for service. Also operating in the city are the University of Minnesota Police Department, Minneapolis Park Police Department, Metro Transit Police, and the Hennepin County Sheriff's Office. The Metropolitan Airports Commission Police serves the Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport in unincorporated Hennepin County.
In May 2020, an MPD officer killed George Floyd by kneeling on his neck for approximately nine minutes. The killing sparked nationwide protests against racism and police brutality, bringing considerable spotlight on the MPD. Bob Kroll, head of the MPD union characterized Floyd as a "violent criminal" and called the protests a "terrorist movement". In June 2020, Minneapolis City Council President Lisa Bender announced that the city should dismantle its police department and replace it with a "transformative new model of public safety." Plans to disband the department were announced days later, with support from a veto-proof majority on the Minneapolis City Council. However, it was soon acknowledged that the city charter prevented the City Council from enacting such plans, which would have to be approved with either joint support from the mayor or by amending the city charter in a public vote.
In the 19th century, the City of St. Anthony and Town of Minneapolis were first adequately served by an appointed city marshal based out of St. Anthony who was assisted by constables. Vested with the power of arrest, they rarely used it. Criminals sentenced would be sent to the Ramsey County Jail or the Stillwater Penitentiary until the Hennepin County Courthouse and Jail was built in 1857. When the two cities merged and incorporated as Minneapolis in 1867, Mayor Dorilus Morrison immediately appointed H. H. Brackett as the first police chief. With six patrolmen, the new Police Department of Minneapolis served a population of about 5,000 people. In 1884, the force numbered 100 men and Shingle Creek workhouse was completed.
In 1876, A. A. Ames was elected to his first of three nonconsecutive terms as mayor. He was dubbed "The Shame of Minneapolis" by the national press and fired half of the police department filling the ranks with political supporters. He appointed his brother Frederick W. Ames as police chief.
The city administration and the police began operating as an organized crime syndicate, extorting protection money and "fines" from illegal businesses of various kinds. The money collected was turned over to the mayor and divided between him and his associates. Minneapolis was promoted as an "open city" to criminals across the country and criminals were released from the city's jail. Illegal businesses such as opium joints, gambling parlors, and houses of prostitution blossomed, many in the Gateway district. It was speculated that women were setting up candy stores to run a legitimate business to children and workers out front, but providing the services of prostitutes in the back. :345–346
In 1887, by act of the new Minnesota Legislature and accorded by the Minneapolis City Council, the Board of Police Commissioners was appointed. Vesting all control of the force to the Board, it was an attempt to thwart the corrupt Mayor "Doc" Ames who had replaced the police force with crooks.
The board was short-lived for three terms until it was abolished in 1890 and a new mayor was elected. Military titles were also abolished. By then the city grew to 200,000 people with 200 officers on a budget of $209,278. Patrols were done on foot and by horseback with headquarters at city hall. By 1909, the department added motorcycles, fingerprinting, and utilized telephones. The MPD started using automobiles for patrol in the 1920s and had most patrol officers in cars by the 1930s.
In the 1930s the MPD was involved in ending labor disputes. The department found an accommodation with local mobsters. During World War II 117 MPD officers fought for the United States in the armed forces. In the 1950s population growth increased the city to over 500,000 residents with nearly six hundred sworn officers. In 1952 the Drunkometer, forerunner to the intoxilyzer, was first used in Minneapolis. During the 1960s major riots along Plymouth Avenue resulted in the creation of a Community Relations Division. The 1970s saw the first use of mobile digital technology (MDTs) in squad cars. In the 1980s and 1990s community-oriented policing became paramount. In an effort to get closer to the community the Community Crime Prevention/SAFE Unit was created.
A city policeman, Charles Stenvig served a total of six years as mayor during the period 1969-1978. He returned to his job after his terms.
Reference
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