Jamar Clark: No Discipline for Officers in Fatal Shooting

MINNEAPOLIS, MN — The Minneapolis police officers involved in the fatal shooting of Jamar Clark on Nov. 15, 2015 will not face discipline, Police Chief Janee Harteau announced Friday afternoon. Harteau said the shooting, which took place near 1611 Plymouth Avenue in north Minneapolis, was "necessary" to protect the safety of the officers. The announcement came after the Minneapolis police had concluded an internal investigation.

The MPD investigation followed earlier investigations conducted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, neither of which resulted in discipline or charges for the officers.

In her statement Friday, Harteau acknowledged "the devastating loss that left the Clark family without a son and brother."

"I did not want to talk publicly about this case until I met with the family, and I had that opportunity this afternoon," Harteau said.

"As a mother, I cannot imagine such a loss as no parent should ever have to bury their child. It is also important for me to recognize that this incident has had a profound impact on our city’s residents, communities, civic leaders and our police officers. "

"The Use of Force Review was extensive. Two investigators from the MPD Internal Affairs Unit were assigned to conduct it. The IA investigators reviewed all the evidence in the BCA criminal investigative file, including all videos, witness statements, police reports and supplements, Minneapolis Emergency Communications Center (MECC) records, and Hennepin Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Dispatch files. The investigators reviewed all aspects of the incident and evaluated the evidence against all potentially relevant MPD policies and procedures."

The Nov. 15 shooting

Police were originally called to the scene in north Minneapolis the night of Nov. 15 because Clark had been identified as a suspect in a domestic assault and was interfering with paramedics' efforts to treat the victim, officials say. When Minneapolis police officers Ringgenberg and Schwarze arrived, they ordered Clark to remove his hands from his pockets to make sure he did not have a gun. When he refused, the officers moved in and attempted to handcuff Clark. When he resisted, Ringgenberg took Clark to the ground and landed on top of him. However, Ringgenberg felt his gun move to the small of his back. When he reached for it, he felt Clark's hand on the gun, an account that was supported by DNA evidence, according to a statement from Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman.

Schwarze said he threatened to shoot Clark if he did not release the gun. Clark refused to do so and Schwarze shot Clark in the head, killing him.

City-wide conference call

The city of Minneapolis will hold town hall conference call following closing of MPD Internal Affairs investigation at 7 p.m. Friday, Oct. 21.

Mayor Betsy Hodges and MPD Chief Janeé Harteau will participate in a town hall-style telephone listening session with the community following the announcement of the closing of an Internal Affairs investigation regarding the officers in Clark’s shooting.

• To participate, dial (785) 424-1675 or 888-632-3384 (toll free)
• Use Conference ID 50417
• Callers will be asked to identify themselves prior to joining the call. Call in 5 to 10 minutes prior to the start time.

Following a brief introduction from the city, the discussion will open to a moderated town hall listening session, according to a news release.

During the listening session, listeners should follow the operator prompts to signify they’d like to comment. Questions will be taken in the order in which they are received. When it’s the caller’s turn to comment, the operator will let that caller know his or her line is live. Following each comment, the city will be given the chance to respond.

Protests

Protests in response to the fatal police shooting of Clark lasted for weeks and cost Minneapolis more than $1 million last year. Protesters, including a significant presence from local Black Lives Matter groups, responded to the fatal shooting by occupying a section of Plymouth Avenue in the Fourth Precinct for nearly 20 days. Demonstrators set up tents on the street.

KSTP reported that police officers accumulated more than $900,000 in overtime during the protests, and total costs to the city exceeded $1 million.

Read the Minneapolis police chief's full remarks on MPD’s internal investigation below

Today we announce the findings of the Minneapolis Police Department’s Internal Affairs Investigation. Before I begin, I want to first acknowledge the devastating loss that left the Clark family without a son and brother. I did not want to talk publicly about this case until I met with the family, and I had that opportunity this afternoon. As a mother, I cannot imagine such a loss as no parent should ever have to bury their child. It is also important for me to recognize that this incident has had a profound impact on our city’s residents, communities, civic leaders and our police officers.
And finally, this has impacted two police officers who were faced with a situation most officers only think about and train for. Their actions have been put under the public microscope; they’ve been subjects of both state and federal investigations and they’ve been reviewed by two of the top prosecutors in this region. The officers will not be charged criminally and we have concluded there were no violations of MPD policy. The investigative standards were extremely high in both the BCA investigation and MPD’s internal affairs investigation and I have the utmost confidence in their findings.
As you know, immediately after the incident I requested the state’s Bureau of Criminal Apprehension to conduct a thorough and independent investigation into what happened during the early morning hours of November 15th, 2015. There were two key factors that Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman clearly demonstrated in March as he announced criminal charges were not warranted against Officers Mark Ringgenberg and Dustin Schwarze. Jamar Clark was not handcuffed and DNA evidence does show Clark grabbed Officer Ringgenberg’s holster and gun. I have concluded the use of deadly force in the line of duty was necessary to protect an officer from apparent death or great bodily harm. It is the same conclusion that was made by the County Attorney.
The US Attorney’s Office cited similar evidence in June, while announcing the Justice Department found insufficient evidence to support federal criminal civil rights charges against the Officers. In quoting the US Attorney’s Office, “the evidence gathered in the BCA’s investigation is insufficient to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the shooting was objectively unreasonable.”
Upon the conclusion of those two investigations, the Minneapolis Police Department was then tasked with conducting its own Internal Investigation for a Use of Force review and to look into whether the officers violated any MPD policies on November 15th.
The Use of Force Review was extensive. Two investigators from the MPD Internal Affairs Unit were assigned to conduct it. The IA investigators reviewed all the evidence in the BCA criminal investigative file, including all videos, witness statements, police reports and supplements, Minneapolis Emergency Communications Center (MECC) records, and Hennepin Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Dispatch files. The investigators reviewed all aspects of the incident and evaluated the evidence against all potentially relevant MPD policies and procedures.
In accordance with MPD procedure, after the investigators completed their investigation, the case was presented to the IAU Commander for review of completeness and accuracy of the investigation. Once approved by the IAU Commander, the case was then forwarded to the Chief’s Office for review by a four person panel comprised of the Assistant Chief and three Deputy Chiefs. The review panel made a preliminary recommendation to me. I made the final determination on this case.
I have determined the takedown maneuver used by Officer Ringgenberg was not a “choke hold,” as described by others. Internal Affairs Investigators found the Officer grabbed the suspect around his upper chest. While this may not be a specific technique the MPD instructs, that does not mean it was unauthorized. The MPD teaches the ultimate purpose in using a takedown maneuver is to quickly bring a person to the ground. The ground is known as the most effective place to gain control of someone. The assertion that Officer Ringgenberg used a takedown move he learned in San Diego misconstrues Officer Ringgenberg’s statement to the BCA.
The Internal Affairs Investigators, much like the county and federal attorneys, evaluated the use of deadly force. The video images reflect the officers’ statements; that Officer Ringgenberg had his back on top of the suspect as the two men fell to the ground. Officer Ringgenberg can clearly be seen on video being pulled back down when he tried to get up and later twisting his duty belt back into position following the use of deadly force. Therefore, the use of deadly force was warranted given the fact that both officers feared for the loss of life based on the belief that Clark was either in possession of the officer’s handgun or would imminently be in possession of the officer’s handgun if not stopped immediately. DNA evidence also supports this assertion.
I would also like to address the “often-cited” timeframe of 61 seconds. Every single day, police officers face quickly escalating situations where suspects refuse to comply with orders. In this case, despite being ordered to take his hands out of his pockets, Jamar Clark refused to do so. These officers did not have the opportunity to negotiate or tactically withdraw, which is the same conclusion the County Attorney issued.
After an exhaustive review of this entire incident, I have concluded that these officers did not dictate the outcome of this incident. This was an outcome that no one wanted. I fully understand that the impact of this incident has been devastating first and foremost, for the Clark family. It has also had broader implications on this Police Department and the city it serves.
In closing, I’d like to thank everyone for their patience. As the Chief, it was very difficult to say little while waiting for all of these investigations to conclude. After looking at all the evidence and all the verifiable facts in this case, I can say with absolute certainty that I fully support the actions of Officers Ringgenberg and Schwarze the morning of November 15th. We did not find any violation of MPD policy.
Following this news conference, I will be meeting with community leaders to talk about my decision, as we explore ways we can all move forward together in the coming weeks, months and years.

Image via Fibonacci Blue, Flickr, used under Creative Commons