Brooklyn Center, Minnesota, approved a host of police reforms over the weekend, including the implementation of an “unarmed civilian traffic enforcement” branch following the death of Daunte Wright, who was killed after an officer mistook her gun for a Taser and shot him in mid-April.
City Council members voted 4-1 on Saturday to move forward with a “Community Safety and Violence Prevention Resolution,” which indicates that the area does “not rely solely on our armed law enforcement officers.” The provision mandates a “Community Response Department,” made up of volunteers, mental health professionals, and social workers, that will intervene in matters “where a city resident is primarily experiencing a medical, mental health, disability-related, or other behavioral” issue.
