According to court records published on Thursday, a Minnesota judge allowed the no-knock raid that brutally murdered Amir Locke in Minneapolis the other week, saying it was necessary to protect the investigating police and the public, Reuters reported.
Officers requesting the order to enter a Minneapolis residence were looking into a prior deadly shooting in St. Paul that used a handgun capable of breaching police body armor. According to the seeking cops, this justified the requirement for a no-knock entrance to catch criminals off guard.
The warrant did not name Locke, a 22-year-old Black male. It’s uncertain how or whether he’s related to the inquiry, according to Minneapolis cops.
Locke’s death has reignited demands to abolish no-knock raid warrants, which gained momentum in 2020 with the fatal shooting of Breonna Taylor, a 26-year-old Black woman, by police during a search on her Kentucky residence. That search warrant has nothing to do with Taylor.
Cahill presided over the trial of ex-Minneapolis law enforcement officer Derek Chauvin, who was found guilty and convicted of the murder of George Floyd in 2020, sparking widespread protests against racial bias and police brutality.
Several days following Locke’s death on February 2, police published video evidence of the search, and peaceful rallies in downtown Minneapolis drew hundreds of people demanding justice and a ban on no-knock warrants.
On Friday, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey declared a halt on such searches, and state legislators are working to curtail them.
Locke had a right to own a firearm in his own house, according to protesters, and was never given the opportunity to disarm himself during the chaotic seconds when police came into his flat without notice.
The no-knock warrant was obtained in connection with a homicide investigation headed by St. Paul Police Department investigators.
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