The Minnesota Legislature passed a Judiciary and Public Safety budget bill in the early morning hours of June 30. After the passage, the Senate POCI Caucus members made the following statement:
“The Senate POCI Caucus will continue to demand public safety accountability and community based anti-violence prevention because we believe that the bill that was adopted by the Minnesota Legislature today does not respond to the urgent needs of our communities today.”
“The Senate debated the Judiciary and Public Safety bill for over 7 hours. DFL members offered several amendments that included pretextual stops, sign & release warrants, body camera footage modifications, study on liability insurance for law enforcement, and white supremacy prohibition. All of these amendments were voted down by the Senate majority. We fought and demanded change and were met with resistance.”
“We applaud the efforts of House POCI members. Thanks to their leadership, the bill makes progress to prevent more people of color dying in the hands of law enforcement. These measures would not have been included if not for the dedicated work of POCI members at the House of Representatives.”
“The state and nation were expecting more from the Minnesota Legislature, but the Senate majority was unwilling to respond to the urgency of the moment. Minnesotans deserve better representation and members of the POCI Caucus will continue to work with the relatives of the victims and activists to ensure our state is a safe place for everyone.”
