Police deployed tear gas and flash-bang grenades Sunday night to clear protesters who gathered outside the Brooklyn Center Police Department in the wake of the fatal police shooting of a 20-year-old man earlier in the day.
Some protesters calling for justice for Daunte Wright lobbed projectiles at officers in riot gear in front of the building, and a crowd of several hundred people remained at the scene after police deployed the munitions just before 10 p.m. Law enforcement ringing the building continued to sporadically fire munitions for more than an hour.
At about 11:30 p.m., Brooklyn Center police declared the crowd an unlawful assembly and said anyone who remained at the scene — including journalists — would be arrested. Minnesota National Guard personnel were seen in the area of the police station, on Humboldt Avenue just north of Interstate 94.
Brooklyn Park Mayor Mike Elliott announced on Twitter just before midnight that he would be issuing a curfew for the city.
The crowd was protesting the Sunday afternoon shooting of Wright by an officer during a traffic stop in the Twin Cities suburb.
Just before 11 p.m., an MPR News reporter witnessed stores being damaged and some looting underway at the Shingle Creek Crossing shopping center and nearby stores in Brooklyn Park. A large number of law enforcement officers were responding to the area.
Gov. Tim Walz issued a statement on Twitter just after 10 p.m., saying “I am closely monitoring the situation in Brooklyn Center. Gwen and I are praying for Daunte Wright’s family as our state mourns another life of a Black man taken by law enforcement.”
Earlier in the evening, a few hundred people gathered at the corner of 63rd Avenue North and Lee Avenue, just down the street from where the shooting happened just before 2 p.m.
People used megaphones, joined by the crowd, to call for justice for the man who was shot. Relatives identified Wright as the man who died. They said they had just bought him a car, and he was on his way to a car wash when the shooting happened.
“Say his name: Daunte Wright!” the crowd chanted, as a line of police in riot gear stretched across 63rd Avenue between the crowd and the shooting scene.
Police cleared the shooting scene just after 8 p.m., with the crowd following as squad cars departed heading west on 63rd Avenue. After police left, Wright’s family remained at the scene, joined in vigil by friends and neighbors.
Family and friends gather near shooting scene
Police said the incident began with a stop for a “traffic violation” just before 2 p.m. on the 6300 block of Orchard Avenue.
According to the police account, “officers determined that the driver of the vehicle had an outstanding warrant. At one point as officers were attempting to take the driver into custody, the driver re-entered the vehicle. One officer discharged their firearm, striking the driver. The vehicle traveled several blocks before striking another vehicle.”
Wright died at the scene. A female passenger in the car suffered non-life-threatening injuries when the vehicle crashed, police said.
The shooting happened on the same afternoon that several community groups held a rally in St. Paul calling for justice for people killed in encounters with police.
And it happened on the eve of the third week of testimony in the trial of former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin for last May’s killing of George Floyd.
Elliott, the Brooklyn Center mayor, issued a statement on Twitter at about 8 p.m. Sunday, calling the shooting “tragic.”
“We are asking the protesters to continue to be peaceful and that peaceful protesters are not dealt with with force,” he said.
Brooklyn Center Community Schools Superintendent Dr. Carly Baker issued a statement at 10:30 p.m. Sunday saying that all students would be in distance learning on Monday, with all school buildings closed.
“This decision is being made out of an abundance of caution following the officer-involved shooting that took place in Brooklyn Center earlier today and not knowing what will unfold overnight in our community,” Baker wrote.
“We are focused on taking steps in the moment. I haven’t entirely processed the tragedy that took place in our community and I’m prioritizing the safety and wellbeing of our students, families, staff members and community members. Tomorrow, our staff will be focused on the needs of our students. We know our community experienced trauma and we need the time and space to process.”
