Minneapolis Mayor Frey Tries Again To Ban No-Knock Warrants

MINNEAPOLIS — Mayor Jacob Frey Tuesday issued his new warrant and entries policy for the Minneapolis Police Department. The new policy bans all no-knock search warrants, according to Frey's office.

The official policy takes effect Friday. Officer training will begin "immediately," officials said.

In addition to banning no-knock warrants, the policy aims to:

• Require officers to repeatedly knock and announce their presence and purpose prior to entry
• Require a minimum wait time of 20 seconds for all warrants and 30 seconds for warrants executed during nighttime hours
  • Under state law, for the purposes of search warrants, nighttime is defined as 8 p.m. until 7 a.m.
• Creates a new "risk classification and evaluation" system
• Creates a new "internal review and accountability" process

The city will also create a public, online dashboard to track forced entries executed by police officers, according to a news release.

"We accomplished what we set out to do," Frey said in a statement.

"This policy is among the most forward-looking and extensive in the nation and will help keep both our residents and officers safe. I’m grateful for all our internal and external partners who provided data, feedback, and guidance in the creation of this policy. Their efforts will have a lasting impact on public safety in Minneapolis."

The police department's use of no-knock warrants came under heavy scrutiny following the police killing of Amir Locke during a no-knock raid in February.

Frey, in particular, drew criticism over his reelection campaign website, which falsely claimed that the mayor had already banned no-knock warrants in Minneapolis.

Frey later acknowledged that "as more and more people and outside groups began weighing in, language became more casual, including my own, which did not reflect the necessary precision or nuance. And I own that."

While the mayor did update the city's policy on no-knock or "unannounced entry" warrants in 2020, they were not banned. Frey handily won a second term on Election Day in November.