Evolving police pursuit policy in Minnesota: An expert weighs in
On July 26, a former Minneapolis police officer will report to the Hennepin County workhouse to serve nine months for the death of an innocent motorist during a high-speed chase.
Last week's sentencing of former Minneapolis Police Officer Brian Cummings raises questions about the consequences police officers can face in pursuits that go wrong, and who has the authority to hand down that discipline.
Erik Misselt, executive director of the Board of Peace Officer Standards and Training, or POST Board, joined Cathy Wurzer on Morning Edition with some answers.
Listen to the full conversation using the audio player above.
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The City of Minneapolis said it was re-evaluating its police pursuit policy, following the death of Leneal Frazier, who was killed by Cummings. The city had already restricted pursuits in 2019, after a sharp spike in chases over a three-year period.
Misselt said the POST Board has a mandatory pursuit policy all agencies must follow.
But in reality, the policy is far more patchworked, as individual law enforcement agencies are only required to adopt the same or a “substantially similar version,” according to Misselt.
“Beyond that, they may customize it to their particular agency, and it can be more restrictive, but not necessarily less,” Misselt said.
A workgroup dedicated to revising the policy has been in place since early 2022, coming after calls from then-Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman for improvement. In a memo, Freeman called pursuit policies statewide “inadequate” and don’t “do enough to protect human life,” allowing officers to initiate pursuits unnecessary to maintaining public safety.
Current state policy says a police pursuit is justified when a driver “fails to stop after being given a visual or audible signal to stop by a peace officer,” and “there is reasonable expectation of a successful apprehension of the suspect”. Officers must also evaluate the risk of initiating a pursuit, and whether its dangers outweigh those of allowing an alleged criminal to escape.
Pursuit training is offered as part of continuing education for law enforcement officers. In Minnesota, officers must complete 48 hours of training in a three-year period to keep their license in good standing.
Frazier's family was upset over the lack of jail time for Cummings, who could be eligible for electronic home monitoring just 90 days into his nine-month sentence. Cummings’ attorneys say the crash happened during a legitimate pursuit of another suspect.
When asked if there is legal leeway for officers who caused bodily harm in these sorts of cases, Misselt said it’s mostly up to individual agencies to enforce their own policies and hand down discipline separate from court proceedings. The POST Board only gets involved with licensing, as in suspending or revoking a license. For Cummings’ felony conviction, Misselt says his license will automatically be revoked.
The Frazier family attorney said he's bringing civil litigation against Minneapolis for what he says are failed police pursuit policies; further, he believes the legislature needs to weigh in and strengthen penalties.
Misselt said many mandatory policing policies are at the will of the legislature, and should there be any changes to pursuit law, the POST Board will comply.