For Immediate Release: April 6, 2022 

Contact: media@colorofchange.org

 

COLOR OF CHANGE: REFUSAL TO HOLD AMIR LOCKE’S KILLER ACCOUNTABLE IS A REMINDER OF HOW POLICE, LEGAL SYSTEM FAIL TO PROTECT BLACK LIVES

Scott Roberts, senior director of criminal justice and democracy campaigns at Color Of Change issued this statement following the decision not to bring charges against the officers who killed Amir Locke: 

“Today’s decision not to bring charges against the Minneapolis police officer who murdered Amir Locke is another grim reminder of exactly how police and the unjust legal system fail to keep Black people safe. Our hearts are with Amir’s family and the Minneapolis community during this tragic time. While they reckoned with their tremendous loss following Amir’s death, the officer who murdered Amir collected their full salaries on paid leave. And even after Amir’s name became a rallying cry for racial justice and police accountability activists on the ground and around the world, that officer is now back on duty. This decision represents a massive failure at every level of government – from Mayor Jacob Frey who campaigned on false promise to end illegal, no-knock warrants, to the Minneapolis Police Department who protected Amir’s killer while falsely accusing Amir of a crime, to the Hennepin County Attorney Michael Freeman who refused to hold that officer accountable. 

“Our movement is working to change that and fighting for the action, investment, and community-led alternatives we need to protect Black lives – in Minneapolis and elsewhere. The fact that Amir was shot and killed just nine seconds after police entered his friend’s apartment shows how ill-equipped police officers are to actually keep our communities safe. It’s not enough to hold cops accountable for violence against Black people; we need public safety alternatives to prevent the violence from happening at all. It’s past time that Mayor Frey, as well as the Minneapolis City Council, stand with the more than 60,000 Minneapolis voters supporting measures to end police violence and invest in resources that help communities thrive – like housing, education, mental health care, and violence interruption programming.”

###

Color Of Change is the nation’s largest online racial justice organization. We help people respond effectively to injustice in the world around us. As a national online force driven by over 7 million members, we move decision-makers in corporations and governments to create a more human and less hostile world for Black people in America. Visit www.colorofchange.org.