The Minneapolis NAACP says there was a dereliction of duties by the City of Minneapolis in the way they handled the shooting of Davis Moturi this past week. Moturi is a Black man, and the man who shot him, John Sawchak, is white.
They're demanding more accountability from the city. President of the Minneapolis NAACP Cynthia Wilson says it starts with Mayor Jacob Frey.
"The mayor has to come forward with a press conference of his own, with some of his city officials, and apologized to the Moturi family," says Wilson. "Apologize to the community who witnessed it so that the community can feel a of sincerity and safety."
Frey released this statement on Thursday:
“Mayor Frey fully supports an independent review of this incident. The mayor and City are committed to always doing better, and this means closely examining past actions and finding where there may be ways to improve and grow.
The mayor extends his condolences to Davis Moturi, his wife, Caroline, and their family and friends. The safety of our residents is a top priority and any form of violence or hate speech is completely unacceptable and does not align with who we are as a community.
Brian O’Hara will continue to be the Minneapolis Police Chief.”
Wilson says Police Chief Brian O'Hara has apologized to her and admitted to dropping the ball on this case, but they're not looking to terminate anyone's job.
"We fire somebody today, we get somebody tomorrow who's going to be the same or similar," says Wilson. "So we're going to just keep terminating people? We got to work with what we have and try to build on it."
"I'm not here to terminate anybody's job," Wilson continues. "I am here for accountability and I heard the question, 'what does that look like?' A start is an authentic apology. And then we're gonna continue to work with these individuals for some next steps."
An independent investigation into what led to the shooting and the delay in Sawchak's arrest is expected to begin soon, something O'Hara, Frey and Minneapolis' Community Safety Commissioner Todd Barnette say they all support.
Wilson says Moturi is recovering and wanted to be at their gathering Friday, but was advised by his doctors to stay home.