State and local prosecutors won't be pressing any criminal charges against the Minneapolis police officer who shot and killed Amir Locke on February 2 this year.
Releasing a statement yesterday, Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison and Hennepin County Attorney Michael Freeman stated, “After a thorough review of all available evidence ... there is insufficient admissible evidence to file criminal charges in this case.”
Jeff Storms, an attorney for Locke's family, said it was a “disappointing day for the family… They're not going to let the lack of criminal charges slow them down one bit.”
Amir Locke, 22 was shot and killed in his apartment during a raid earlier this year. The police were executing a ‘no-knock warrant’ on Locke’s 17-year-old cousin in connection to a homicide case.
Locke was asleep when police entered. He was not a suspect in the crime under investigation or named in the ‘no-knock’ warrant.
The incident
Amir Locke did possess a legal firearm and raised it in self-defense against the cops, which in turn led police officer Mark Hanneman to shoot thrice and fatally wound Locke.
Hanneman was wearing a body camera and provided a written statement to investigators stating, “I felt in this moment that if I did not use deadly force myself, I would likely be killed.”
City officials released a 14-second video days after Locke’s death which showed him with a gun.
Is there a way forward?
Locke's shooting revived community calls for a ban on no-knock warrants, prompting Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey to place a moratorium on the practice in February.
State and local attorneys Ellison and Freeman, issued a 44-page investigative report yesterday on Locke’s death in which they detailed that no-knock warrants are “highly risky” and can pose “significant dangers” to people who are not engaged in criminal activity.
