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Representative Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., Appeared to defend the Minneapolis city council’s proposal on Monday to shift $ 8 million in police funding to other departments.
“Don’t fall for fear-inspired stories,” the Minnesota MP tweeted. “We can create a justice system that prioritizes people’s basic needs like mental health and violence prevention, and allows the city to put public safety first.
She praised city council members Lisa Bender, Phillipe Cunningham and Steve Fletcher, who wrote the policy. According to the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, the proposal would shift about 5% of the police budget to a mental health crisis team and violence prevention, among others.
After the death of George Floyd in May, Omar was one of the main supporters of the “defund the police” movement, which was pushed back by law enforcement.
DEFUND POLICE SUPPORTERS TELL OFFER NOT TO LEAVE
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey reportedly described city council’s proposal as “irresponsible and untenable.”
“This notion that in order to have a more comprehensive public safety strategy, you have to remove a critical element, which is the police, is wrong,” Frey said, adding that communities were looking for an approach “both and “.
“It’s literally a matter of life and death right now and we have to get it right,” he said. In June, city council cut the police budget by about $ 14 million.
While Frey’s proposed budget called for a target police size of 888, the city council’s plan would reduce the authorized force size to 750 from 770 officers.
Citing the council’s calls for deferral of funding, Minneapolis residents had previously sued the city for lack of a police presence amid spikes in violent crime in the city.
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According to police data, more than 500 people have been shot in Minneapolis this year – twice as many as in 2019, while murders are up more than 50%.
So far this year, there have been nearly 5,000 violent crimes, the most in the past five years, according to records.
Like New York, Minneapolis has seen an increase in officers seeking to leave the force.
Fox News’ Hollie McKay and Audrey Conklin contributed to this report.
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