Amir Locke

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The mother of a Black man who was shot and killed by Minneapolis police who were serving a no-knock warrant spoke angrily about the ...

Crump faulted police for creating a life-or-death situation, and said gun rights groups should join with the family in demanding an end to no-knock warrants. In their applications for search warrants of the Minneapolis apartment and other locations, authorities said a no-knock warrant was necessary to protect the public and officers as they looked for guns, drugs and clothing worn by people suspected in a violent killing. Data on the website of the citizen group Communities United Against Police Brutality shows a fourth complaint, in 2018, that remains open. Locke was killed seconds after the SWAT team entered the apartment at 6:48 a.m. Body camera video shows an officer using a key to unlock the door and enter, followed by at least four officers in uniform and protective vests. She did not comment directly on Hanneman’s actions but said, “Officers never want to face split-second decisions that end in the loss of life.” Drugs and money were found in Elder’s SUV, according to court documents. “I felt in this moment that if I did not use deadly force myself, I would likely be killed.” But they said there was insufficient evidence to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Hanneman violated the state statute governing when police can use deadly force. It sparked protests and a reexamination of no-knock search warrants. Locke’s death came as three former Minneapolis police officers were on trial in federal court in St. Paul in George Floyd’s killing. Locke was shot seconds after officers entered the apartment. Prosecutors said body camera video showed that Locke pointed a gun at Officer Mark Hanneman, justifying his use of deadly force.

The shooting drew thousands of protesters to the streets and renewed calls for police accountability in the city where George Floyd was murdered.

In response to Mr. Locke’s killing, the mayor issued a new policy this week, which prohibits no-knock warrants and requires officers to knock and announce their presence, and then wait, before entering a building. The decision not to file criminal charges does not mean the end of the matter. “So my son decided that if he’s going to go back and forth and do Instacart and DoorDash, he needed to bear arms, the legal way.” Those three officers were all found guilty of violating Mr. Floyd’s constitutional rights. Mr. Hanneman, 34, was placed on administrative duty after the shooting but has since returned to his regular job, according to the Police Department. (A cousin of Mr. Locke’s was later arrested in connection with the St. Paul homicide.) “Amir Locke’s life mattered,” Attorney General Keith Ellison of Minnesota and Michael Freeman, the Hennepin County attorney, said in a joint statement. People should carry forward and continue to try to make the system one we can all be proud of.” Mr. Locke was 22 when he was killed. That Mr. Locke was killed as police officers used a no-knock warrant, a law enforcement tactic that was heavily criticized in the wake of the police killing of Breonna Taylor in Louisville, Ky., in 2020 during a botched raid, only added to the anger in Minneapolis. Mr. Locke owned the gun legally. Even as the killing provoked new rounds of condemnation against the Minneapolis Police Department and the mayor who oversees it, criminal charges were seen by legal experts as unlikely.

Amir Locke, 22, was killed on Wednesday by a Minneapolis police officer during the execution of a no-knock warrant, sparking city-wide protests.

It would be unethical for us to file charges in a case in which we know we will not prevail because the law does not support the charges.” It was the Minneapolis Police Department that reportedly changed the request when it was asked to execute the warrant. No-knock raids at the hands of law enforcement continue to take the lives of innocent Black people.” “I’m hoping with this break-in and murder that we witnessed on-camera, I hope we can at least ban no-knock warrants.” And Representative Cori Bush actively called on the Senate to act on no-knock warrants, noting that in the two years between Taylor and Locke’s deaths, “the Senate didn’t even bring the bill to ban no-knock warrants to a vote.” She added, “The whole system is guilty.” Nonetheless, Ellison said of the decision, “Amir Locke’s life mattered.” In all but “exigent circumstances” — during a chase, when they perceive imminent harm, to render first aid, to prevent the destruction of evidence, or to stop a suspect from fleeing — police will have to knock and announce themselves, then wait 20 to 30 seconds before entering a residence, depending on the time of day. “Like the case of Breonna Taylor, the killing of Amir Locke shows a pattern of no-knock warrants having deadly consequences for Black Americans,” Crump said, via NPR. Speaking with Don Lemon on CNN, Karen Wells, Locke’s mother, said that her son “made sure that he did his research, everything was going to be legal.” Wells also added that she worried about Locke owning a gun specifically because of what the police might do if they saw him with it. Officers immediately provided emergency aid and carried the suspect down to the lobby to meet paramedics.” The original release also announced an independent investigation from the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension and included photos of the gun the “male suspect” was allegedly pointing at the officers. The officer who shot Locke will not face criminal charges, Ellison and Freeman said in a joint statement, because they found “insufficient admissible evidence to file criminal charges in this case.” “Approximately nine seconds into the entry, officers encountered a male who was armed with a handgun pointed in the direction of the officers,” read the initial press release from the Minneapolis Police Department. “At one point, shots were fired, and the adult male suspect was struck. Amir Locke, a 22-year-old man, died on February 2 after being shot by SWAT officers during the execution of a no-knock warrant.

Prosecutors declined to file charges against the Minneapolis police officer who fatally shot Amir Locke or any other officers involved in the no-knock ...

The city garnered significant national media attention in November 2020 when it announced, amid a nationwide reckoning over police policies prompted in part by the murder of Floyd and the killing of Taylor, it was changing its policy. In their statement, Freeman and Ellison said that Locke might be alive today "absent the no-knock warrant used in this case." during warrant service reintroduced the dangers of warrants into the American consciousness. After officers keyed into the apartment, Locke looked over the back of the couch, ducked down under a blanket, lowered a handgun, and then raised it toward the officer who then shot him three times, according to the statement from prosecutors announcing their decision. At the time Locke was shot, he was in legal possession of the firearm, inside the apartment, according to prosecutors, but they said that wasn't relevant to the investigation. The threat to my life and the lives of my teammates was imminent and terrifying." I don't live in the Twin Cities. I left the Twin Cities. I took my son with me when I left the Twin Cities," Karen Wells said. "I will add this, no-knock warrants aren't particularly safe for officers either. Locke's mother said he was working as a food delivery driver and had the gun for protection. The officer, and others on the Minneapolis SWAT team, were there serving a warrant in a homicide investigation. "There was no opportunity for me to reposition myself or retreat. There was no way for me to de-escalate this situation.