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Glen Stubbe | Star Tribune via AP file 
June 17, 2020 

Minnesota Dems push bills on police force, brutality in special session

Good morning. It's Wednesday and here's your news.

Sunny and hot. Twin Cities highs in the lower 90s with 10 to 20 mph winds and a chance of late-night storms. Statewide, highs in the upper 80s to mid-90s. More on Updraft | Forecast

Under Minnesota law, police can use deadly force under these  circumstances

  • To protect officers or other people from apparent death or serious harm. 
  • To capture a fleeing person who used deadly force or threatened it.
  • To apprehend someone who is reasonably believed to pose a continuing fatal threat if left on the loose.
Those definitions are too vague, one lawmaker says. “Unfortunately, the current law falls short because it relies too heavily on subjective judgment of what might be a threat,” said Rep. Rena Moran, DFL-St. Paul. “We’ve heard that before from law enforcement officers that ‘well, I feared for my life’ or simply ‘I was scared.’”

Moran is pushing legislation that would change the law governing when police may use deadly force. Among the changes, her bill would require there be an "imminent" threat of death or harm, rather than "apparent." Here's the entire bill.

Minnesota House Democrats are moving ahead with a separate bill aimed at preventing police brutality. The legislation includes new use-of-force standards, training requirements and mental health counseling, while also banning chokeholds and warrior training.

On the COVID-19 front, the newest data continues showing the virus plateauing in Minnesota. Yesterday was the second day in a row the Health Department reported single-digit deaths and intensive care cases were at their lowest number in over a month.

Here are the latest coronavirus statistics:

  • 30,882 cases confirmed (197 new) via 429,145 tests

  • 1,313 deaths (9 new)

  • 3,658 cases requiring hospitalization

  • 357 people remain hospitalized; 185 in intensive care

  • 27,006 patients no longer needing isolation

Cody Nelson, MPR News | @codyleenelson
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