Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D) announced an executive action Monday that will change police practices to increase law enforcement transparency and accountability.
The executive action, which comes just days after former Minnesota police officer Derek Chauvin was sentenced to 22 1/2 years in prison for the killing of George Floyd, will allocate $15 million in funding from the American Rescue Plan towards community safety and violence intervention.
Minnesota has an opportunity to create safer communities for all.
— Governor Tim Walz (@GovTimWalz) June 28, 2021
I'm taking action to build a public safety system focused on transparency, accountability, and violence prevention.
With these changes, we take a step closer to a system that truly protects all Minnesotans.
Changes will also be made to the state's policy surrounding body camera footage as families of people killed by cops will now be permitted to see the footage within five days of the incident. The move will also initiate changes to increase police transparency through the Minnesota Board of Peace Officer Standards and Training.
"Right now, we have an opportunity to create safer communities for all Minnesotans by building a public safety system focused on transparency, accountability, and violence prevention," Walz told the Associated Press. "These policy changes and increased investments in safety — together with the Minnesota Police Accountability Act signed into law last summer and the bipartisan public safety plan this legislative session — get us closer to a system of public safety that truly protects all Minnesotans."
As Townhall previously reported, state lawmakers are expected to soon vote on a public safety bill, which is expected to pass, that will include regulating no-knock warrants, creating a police misconduct database, implementing an office of missing and murdered indigenous relatives as well as a task force for missing and murdered black women.
The two-year, $52 billion budget bill, which must be approved prior to Wednesday’s deadline to avoid a government shutdown, is expected to pass.