Thursday, November 19, 2015

Minneapolis Police Report Minor Injuries, Car Damage
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The latest in the investigation into the fatal shooting of a black man by Minneapolis police that has sparked days of demonstrations (all times local):

November 19, 2015

11:30 p.m. Minneapolis police say several officers sustained minor injuries during a protest over the shooting of a black man by an officer. Inspector Mike Friestleben told the Minneapolis Star Tribune that the officers were hurt Wednesday night after being hit by water bottles and rocks. Scores of protesters had gathered outside the 4th Precinct headquarters, near where 24-year-old Jamar Clark was shot Sunday. He died a day later.

Friestleben also says police arrested one man on suspicion of slashing the tires of an unmarked squad car. Police told TV station WCCO several squad cars in the precinct parking lot sustained "significant damage" from bricks.

Minneapolis Mayor Betsy Hodges issued a statement saying she and police Chief Janee Harteau urged officers to exercise restraint and protesters to act peacefully.


9:15 p.m.

Minneapolis police are using a chemical irritant to control a crowd of protesters outside a precinct office near where an officer shot an unarmed black man over the weekend.

Police spokesman John Elder says chemical spray has been coming from both police and the crowd.

Scores of protesters are massed outside the 4th Precinct headquarters in north Minneapolis. Earlier Wednesday, police cleared the entryway where demonstrators had camped out since the shooting of 24-year-old Jamar Clark early Sunday. Clark died a day later.

According to tweets from the Minneapolis Police Department, police used a chemical irritant after officers trying to remove tarps had rocks and bottles thrown at them. In another incident, police say an officer was hit by an irritant sprayed by a protester.

Police say they also have fired one marking round to identify a man who was throwing bricks.

7:30 p.m.

The head of the Minneapolis police union says an unarmed, black assault suspect who was fatally shot by police was disarming the officer and was not handcuffed.

Lt. Bob Kroll is president of the Police Officers Federation of Minneapolis. He told The Associated Press in an email that, "Cuffs were never on."

Some community members say 24-year-old Jamar Clark was handcuffed when he was shot. Police initially said he wasn't handcuffed.

The state agency that's investigating the shooting, the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, said it's one of the things it's looking at.

Kroll also says Clark had "a violent history" and that the two officers involved in the shooting have no discipline on their records.

6:40 p.m.

A former supervisor for a Minneapolis police officer involved in the fatal shooting of an unarmed black man says the officer was exemplary.

Maple Grove police Capt. Adam Lindquist says he sometimes supervised Officer Mark Ringgenberg when Ringgenberg was on the suburban force from 2012 to 2014. Lindquist says Ringgenberg was a top DWI enforcer and got an award from Mothers Against Drunk Driving in 2013.

Ringgenberg is one of two officers identified Wednesday as involved in the shooting of 24-year-old Jamar Clark. Police say Clark scuffled with officers responding to an assault call in which he was a suspect and was shot.

It isn't clear which officer fired the shot. The other officer is Dustin Schwarze.

5:15 p.m.

Minneapolis police have released partial service records for the two officers involved in the fatal shooting of an unarmed black man.

Mark Ringgenberg and Dustin Schwarze both joined the department 13 months ago. Schwarze was an officer in suburban Richfield for almost six years before that. Ringgenberg previously served in two suburban departments and in San Diego.

Neither officer has awards or commendations in the records released Wednesday. The city didn't immediately release disciplinary records. The men's races weren't released.

Court records show that Ringgenberg and another San Diego officer were accused of excessive force in 2012. A New Jersey man said Ringgenberg had grabbed him from behind and held him a chokehold. The man's federal civil rights lawsuit was settled.

4 p.m.

Police in Minneapolis say a move against protesters camped out at a north side precinct was limited to clearing its entryway of demonstrators.

Some 18 tents have been set up outside the 4th Precinct in the wake of Sunday morning's fatal shooting of an unarmed black man, 24-year-old Jamar Clark. Some protesters had been sleeping in the precinct vestibule.

Chief Janee Harteau says officers warned four women they had to leave the building's vestibule or be arrested. She says police have no plans to clear away the tents or stop protests as long as they are peaceful.

Inspector Michael Friestleben says officers have shown restraint as bottles and rocks have been thrown at them.

2:30 p.m.

Officers have lined up in front of a north side Minneapolis precinct where protesters have been camped since police fatally shot an unarmed black man on Sunday.

Protesters shouted at police Wednesday as officers pulled down an awning at the site. Police haven't made any move against some 18 other tents set up outside the 4th Precinct station, but officers did dump water on a campfire to extinguish it, prompting protesters to chant, "Shame on you!" The fire was quickly re-lit.

Besides officers blocking off the front of the station, orange barricades were set up on one of the street in front of the station and bicycle officers were blocking off the other end.

Some community members say Clark was handcuffed when he was shot. Police have disputed that. A state investigation and a federal civil rights investigation have been launched.

1:45 p.m.

Police in Minneapolis are taking down tents set up by protesters outside a north Minneapolis precinct following the weekend shooting of an unarmed black man.

Live video shot by KARE-TV showed uniformed police and others in military camouflage taking down tents Wednesday afternoon. About 18 tents have been set up since 24-year-old Jamar Clark was shot in the head in a confrontation with officers early Sunday.

Other protesters can be seen shouting at the officers removing the tents.

Some community members say Clark was handcuffed when he was shot. Police have disputed that. A state investigation and a federal civil rights investigation have been launched.

1:40 p.m.

Police in Minneapolis have declined to disclose the race of two officers involved in the weekend shooting death of an unarmed black man.

The officers were identified Wednesday as seven-year veterans Mark Ringgenberg and Dustin Schwarze. The police department released their personnel records but redacted information on race, which the public isn't entitled to under state law.

The officers were involved in a confrontation with 24-year-old Jamar Clark on Sunday after they were summoned to a reported assault. Police say Clark, a suspect in the assault, was interfering with medical personnel and got into a scuffle with the officers. He was shot once in the head.

Some community members allege that Clarke was handcuffed when he was shot, which police dispute.

12 p.m.

The sister of an unarmed black man who was fatally shot by Minneapolis police during a confrontation says the family appreciates the protests on behalf of her brother but isn't participating.

Javille Burns' brother, 24-year-old Jamar Clark, died after being shot in the head early Sunday by police who were responding to a domestic violence call. Some onlookers have alleged that Clark was handcuffed when he was shot, which police have disputed. They say Clark was shot when he scuffled with officers.

Burns says her family wants justice for brother, but also wants peace. She also says he was a peaceful, despite things being said about him.

Protesters have demanded that investigators release any video they have of the shooting, but investigators say they won't while the probe is ongoing.

10:45 a.m.

Authorities have identified two Minneapolis police officers involved in the weekend shooting of an unarmed black man.

The Bureau of Criminal Apprehension says they are Mark Ringgenberg and Dustin Schwarze. The state agency says both have been police officers for seven years, including 13 months with the Minneapolis department.

The BCA is investigating circumstances surrounding the death of 24-year-old Jamar Clark, who died Monday after being shot once in the head. Police say Clark scuffled with officers who had been called to the scene of a suspected domestic assault. And they say Clark, a suspect in that assault, was interfering with emergency workers trying to treat the victim.

Some community members have alleged that Clark was handcuffed when he was shot. Police have disputed it.

A federal civil rights investigation has also been launched.

This story has been changed to correct Officer Mark Ringgenberg's first name. The Associated Press, based on information from the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, erroneously referred to him as Mike Ringgenberg in the initial version.

8:10 a.m.

The head of the Minneapolis police union says two officers involved in the fatal shooting of an unarmed black man have given statements to state investigators on the confrontation that led to the death of 24-year-old Jamar Clark on Sunday.

Union president Lt. Bob Kroll says the officers met Tuesday night with the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension. Kroll says he hopes the investigation moves quickly now.

Some community members say Clark was handcuffed when he was shot. Police say Clark was interfering with paramedics who were treating an injured woman, and have disputed that he was handcuffed.

Kroll says he hopes people who are making the handcuff allegations give statements to the BCA, and that they are charged with a crime if the statements turn out to be false.

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