Minneapolis to announce new police chief 2 years after George Floyd's killing despite recruiting woes
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey expected to announce his nomination for police chief by the end of the month
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Minneapolis is expected to announce its new police chief by month's end, more than two years after George Floyd’s killing.
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey interviewed three finalists last weekend following a nationwide search, according to the Minneapolis Star-Tribune.
Former Chief Medaria Arradondo, a three-decade veteran of the force and the department’s first Black police chief, announced his retirement in December 2021 and served his last day in January. Interim Chief Amelia Huffman has been at the helm since as Frey continues to search for Arradondo’s replacement.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}In March, the city announced that it hired California-based Public Sector Search & Consulting, along with Dr. Cedric Alexander, to help with the nationwide hunt. The job description sought "a visionary leader, able to communicate the need for and create long-lasting and systemic change within MPD."
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Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey at a press conference on March 12, 2021, to announce the record $27 million settlement to the family of George Floyd. (Stephen Maturen/Getty Images)
Minneapolis Police Chief Medaria Arradondo listens during a protest in response to the shooting death of Thurman Blevins on June 24, 2018. (Jerry Holt/Star Tribune via Getty Images)
RaShall Brackney in front of the Charlottesville Police Station on July 28, 2022. She has filed a lawsuit against the city regarding her termination as police chief. (Zack Wajsgras for The Washington Post via Getty Images)
The three contenders for Minneapolis police chief are Elvin Barren, a 21-year veteran of the Detroit Police Department who became Southfield, Michigan’s police chief in 2019; RaShall Brackney, the since-fired police chief of Charlottesville, Virginia, who went after the city’s controversial SWAT team amid the fallout from the deadly 2017 "Unite the Right" rally; and Brian O'Hara, a 20-year police veteran in Newark, New Jersey, currently serving as the city’s deputy mayor for strategic initiatives for police services and public safety.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Frey's nomination must be submitted to City Council for approval.
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The new chief will come onto the job as the city is negotiating a legal agreement with the Minnesota Department of Human Rights, which found a decade-long pattern of racial discrimination at the Minneapolis Police Department.