12 Injured At George Floyd Protests Will Receive $600,000; Minneapolis Settles With ACLU

MINNEAPOLIS, MN — The city of Minneapolis and the American Civil Liberties Union of Minnesota reached a $600,000 settlement for a lawsuit brought on behalf of 12 protesters injured during demonstrations in the wake of George Floyd’s death in 2020 at the hands of police.

The lawsuit alleged Minneapolis police used unnecessary and excessive force to suppress demonstrators’ First Amendment rights by tear-gassing protesters and shooting them with foam and rubber bullets, sometimes firing with no warning, an ACLU news release said. The settlement was accepted Wednesday by the U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota, which entered an injunction, bringing the lawsuit to an end, according to the ACLU.

“People who are demonstrating peacefully should never be met with police violence as they were in Minneapolis during protests over MPD’s murder of George Floyd,” ACLU-MN Legal Director Teresa Nelson said in the news release.

The plaintiffs, who said they suffered bruising, respiratory issues and psychological trauma, will split the $600,000, according to the ACLU, which noted that the settlement dismissed claims against specific officers.

The agreement prevents the city from arresting; threatening to arrest; or using physical force such as chemical agents, grenades or foam-tipped bullets against lawful demonstrators, the news release said. The injunction also limits police's use of chemical agents to disperse peaceful protests and requires officers at demonstrations have their body cameras recording and unobstructed, according to the ACLU.

“Our right to peacefully protest should never be met with military-style crowd deterrents from the police, and this agreement is a big step towards keeping peaceful protesters safe from police violence,” plaintiff Jordan Meyer said in the news release.

City Attorney Kristyn Anderson confirmed in a statement that the settlement was approved by the City Council and signed by the mayor in October.

"The City Attorney's Office executed and filed documents necessary to effectuate the settlement, and an order reflecting portions of that settlement were made public today," she said in the statement.