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The Hennepin County Attorney’s Office has refused to press charges against a 34-year-old man 

 earlier this year for allegedly possessing narcotics and a firearm.

Video of the arrest — in which two Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office deputies are seen striking the man in the head while holding him down — has been circulating on social media over the past week.

On Jan. 9, the two deputies stopped the man in a south Minneapolis parking lot in the Seward neighborhood after noticing his car was missing license plates on the front and back. They later saw a temporary New Jersey license plate in the rear window of the car.

The traffic stop escalated to an arrest and in the process, the deputies punched the driver on the head five times before putting him in handcuffs. They found suspected illegal drugs on him and a gun in his car.

The sheriff’s office submitted the evidence to the county attorney’s office, which declined to press charges against the man. In a three-page explanation of its decision, the county attorney’s office on Friday said deputies had “reasonable suspicion” to stop the suspect’s vehicle but “the rapid escalation of the situation, including physical contact and handcuffing, exceeds the limits of a stop based on reasonable suspicion.”

The sheriff’s office disagreed, calling the stop “lawful” and saying the suspect failed to comply with “command to raise his hands.” They added the suspect “resisted and reached for his waistband, which resulted in the detectives needing to use force in order to handcuff him.”

The encounter was captured on video by a bystander, garnering about 95,000 views and hundreds of comments decrying the deputies’ actions. The attorney’s office said it sped up its review of the case after the video appeared on social media, but its analysis on Friday didn’t address whether the officers’ force was justified.

Meanwhile, the Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office asked the Wright County Sheriff’s Office to review the deputies’ actions. The Wright County Sheriff’s Office said that “given the circumstances that the [detectives] were faced with,” force was justified.

Crime, Law and Justice

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Nicole Ki

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The attorney’s office cited lack of probable cause in the arrest of a 34-year-old man in south Minneapolis on Jan. 9 and announced they were not pursuing charges of possession of illegal drugs and a firearm.

A woman speaks at a mic during a press conference

Hennepin County Attorney's Office refuses to press charges against man struck by deputies during arrest

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