Black Lives Matter Mpls to urge no charges at Bloomington meeting

Demonstrators filled the rotunda
Demonstrators filled the Mall of America rotunda and chanted "Black lives matter" to protest police brutality, Saturday, Dec. 20, 2014, in Bloomington, Minnesota.
Aaron Lavinsky / The Star Tribune via AP

Black Lives Matter is asking supporters to attend a Bloomington City Council meeting on Monday to urge the city's attorney not to press charges against organizers of a protest at the Mall of America last month.

In a statement on the protest group's Facebook page on Monday, Black Lives Matter Minneapolis invited supporters to the "quiet and peaceful" event at the council meeting.

Members of the group Black Lives Matter Minneapolis organized a protest of at least 1,500 people at the Mall of America on Dec. 20. It was part of a nationwide wave of protests following incidents in Missouri and New York where unarmed black men were killed by police officers.

Although 26 people were arrested after the protest, mostly for trespassing, the protest was peaceful and there was no property damage reported.

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Bloomington City Attorney Sandra Johnson told MPR News a few days after the protest that she planned to file charges against protest organizers for participating or aiding an unlawful assembly or aiding a public nuisance. She also said she was planning to seek restitution from protest organizers for additional security costs incurred by the mall.

Johnson told MPR News that the protest at the mall put the public in danger and hurt businesses located in the building.

Protest organizers have attracted the support of some local clergy, as well as Rep. Keith Ellison, who last week urged Johnson not to press charges against organizers.

No charges have yet been filed against organizers.