August 30, 2004 - Minneapolis community leaders and police are urging residents to let an investigation into allegations of police brutality run its course. Police officials and community representatives met face-to-face today. It's the second meeting since a television report showing video of an officer striking a handcuffed suspect.
August 31, 2004 - MPR’s Stephanie Hemphill reports that Duluth Mayor Herb Bergson is supporting the city's annual gay pride festival in a proclamation thanking those in the LGBTQ community for their contributions to city.
August 31, 2004 - Minneapolis community leaders and police are urging residents to let an investigation into allegations of police brutality run its course. Police officials and community representatives met face-to-face today. It's the second meeting since a television report showing video of an officer striking a handcuffed suspect.
September 1, 2004 - Governor Tim Pawlenty is asking officials in the state's two largest cities to allow police officers to check people's immigration status. Pawlenty sent a letter to the Minneapolis and St. Paul city councils requesting that they change city ordinances that prohibit police officers from checking the papers of people who are not suspected of illegal activity. The governor cited a case in North Carolina where police officers detained an immigrant after they saw him videotaping financial institutions. Minneapolis City Council president Paul Ostrow says giving police officers the powers of federal agents could have a chilling effect on police-community relations.
September 3, 2004 - The federal Wilderness Act is forty years old today - a document with a lot of Minnesota connections. The Bill was first introduced in 1956 by Minnesota US Senator Hubert Humphrey. One its most visible supporters was Ely writer Sigurd Olson. Olson's biographer, David Backes, says Olson was controversial but respected.
September 7, 2004 - After months of planning, three St. Paul elementary schools today are set to welcome hundreds of new immigrant students.
September 7, 2004 - The start of the new school year today in St. Paul marks the opening of three Transitional Learning Centers. District officials created the centers in response to the latest wave of Hmong immigrants moving to the city. Como Park, Hayden Heights and Phalen Lake will serve up to 125 students each in the short-term program. But the district still doesn't doesn't know how many kids will show up. Superintendent Pat Harvey says some of the students who lived in a Thailand refugee camp have little formal education. She says they need a program that provides basic information.
September 10, 2004 - Minneapolis Police Chief Bill McManus says Governor Pawlenty is wrong to want police officers to arbitrarily check people's immigration status. Earlier this month the governor sent a letter to officials in Minneapolis and St. Paul urging the cities to change the laws which prohibit police officers from asking about a person's immigration status. Pawlenty says such prohibitions compromise security. On Minnesota Public Radio's Midmorning program today, McManus said it's a form of racial profiling and he's steadfastly against it.
October 11, 2004 - Minneapolis police have started an internal investigation into allegations of police brutality stemming from a scuffle Friday night. Second Precinct Inspector Maderia Arradondo says the investigation will look into whether officer Alan Williams used excessive force when he shoved Dana Canty during a disturbance call. Canty checked into a hospital Saturday night with head injuries.
October 11, 2004 - Minneapolis police have launched an internal investigation into an allegation of police brutality stemming from a incident Friday night. North Memorial Medical Center admitted Dana Canty Saturday with head injuries. The day before Officer Alan Williams shoved Canty during a disturbance call. Second Precinct Inspector Maderia Arradondo says Williams remains on the job during the investigation by internal affairs. He says investigators will look into whether the force Williams used was appropriate.