Rybak: State should investigate police issues

Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak says the state of Minnesota should investigate cases where the city's police officers use lethal force -- whether the city's police union likes it or not.

Serious, high-profile cases deserve to be investigated by a completely independent agency, such as the state Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, Rybak told MPR News on Friday.

Minneapolis Police Chief Janee Harteau unveiled a plan earlier this week for the BCA to investigate incidents where city officers hurt or kill someone. But Gov. Mark Dayton blocked it from being implemented, saying the state had not formally agreed to take over those inquiries.

The Minneapolis Police Federation argued the department's internal affairs officers should continue to investigate those cases.

Rybak accused the union of throwing its "political weight around" on the issue.

"The union should not dictate whether the people of this city or whether the police officers should be able to get independent review," Rybak said.

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