Minneapolis city leaders are announcing their selection for the company that will provide an early intervention system for police under the department's consent decree requirements.
Chicago-based Benchmark Analytics will track patterns in officer behavior including disciplinary action, citizen complaints and excessive use of force, in an attempt to intervene earlier and crack down on officer misconduct.
Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O'hara says the system isn't a cover all solution and it will take accountability from within the department to make it work.
"What is the arrest data look like? What is the off duty work? What does their overtime look like? What are their patterns in attendance? Do they happen to call out, or not work every other Friday or something," asks Chief O'Hara. "But again, it's only as good as the data that's getting put into the initial system in the first place and we're only going to be good as the supervisors who are reviewing it."
The hope is the system will inform supervisors about potential issues before they escalate.
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey says this work is key to remaining accountable to the community.
"The officers continue improving so that they can show a community and the residents who live here, we really are about making the necessary changes that we talk about," explains Mayor Frey. "We are working through a settlement agreement. We have an anticipated consent decree that's coming down the pike as well."
The proposed five-year contract is expected to cost the city an estimated $2.3 million. Training for supervisors and officers is expected begin in early 2025.
The consent decree now legally requires Minneapolis to implement police reform measures that have already been agreed upon. It follows a finding by the Human Rights Department that the MPD engaged in a pattern of discriminatory policing for years leading up to the murder of George Floyd in 2020.
