Cop who fatally shot Amir Locke won’t face criminal charges [Video]

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW:

• A Minneapolis police officer will not be criminally charged for fatally shooting Amir Locke.
• Officer Mark Hanneman killed the 22-year-old during a no-knock warrant raid in February.
• Locke, a legal gun owner, was not a suspect in the crime for which the warrant was issued.

A Minneapolis police officer will not face criminal charges for killing Amir Locke during a no-knock warrant raid, prosecutors said Wednesday.

Locke, a 22-year-old black man, was fatally shot on Feb. 2 by Officer Mark Hanneman during an early morning raid at his apartment. Bodycam footage showing Locke pointing a gun at the officer deemed the shooting as self-defense, according to Attorney General Keith Ellison and Hennepin County Attorney Michael Freeman.

Locke was sleeping on a couch at his cousin’s apartment at the time. He woke up and stood up while holding a gun when he heard there were other people in the house. Locke was shot in the face, shoulder and chest.

Locke, a legal gun owner, was not a suspect in the crime for which the warrant was issued.

“It would be unethical for us to file charges in a case in which we know that we will not able to prevail because the law does not support the charges,” Ellison told reporters.

Hanneman said he “feared” for his life and that of other SWAT team officers.

“Officer Hanneman perceived that Mr. Locke’s movements and production of a firearm presented a threat of death or great bodily harm that was reasonably likely to occur, and to which the officers had to respond without delay,” Ellison said.

Locke’s death prompted protests and calls for an end to no-knock search warrants in Minneapolis and other Minnesota cities.

No-knock search warrants were banned by Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey after Locke’s death. On Tuesday, Frey signed a new policy that requires cops to knock and wait before raiding a residence.

According to the Star Tribune, police can still enter a location without waiting up to 30 seconds in “exigent circumstances.” Some critics think that could be a loophole in the new policy.

In February, Locke’s mother, Karen Wells, said that the cops “executed” her son. She hired Ben Crump, a prominent civil rights lawyer to represent them. Crump and attorney Jeff Storms had already won a $27 million settlement for Floyd’s family.

Source: New York Post