Unarmed ‘Violence Interruptors’ Show Mixed Results in Minneapolis

In Minneapolis, where George Floyd was murdered by a police officer last summer, the push to invest in violence prevention services is playing out — and producing mixed results, the Wall Street Journal reports.

Floyd’s death upturned standard practices on public safety, prompting people to de-emphasize the role of police in responding to emergency situations. Late last year, Minneapolis City Council members voted to shift about $8 million from the mayor’s $179 million police budget to other services, including violence prevention and mental health programs, the Associated Press reported.

One such program is the Agape Movement, a local anti-violence program composed of people with ties to the community, including former gang members and incarcerated people. Agape members attempt to reduce crime by intervening in “tit-for-tat” shootings and other conflicts, conducting patrols without guns or threat of arrest, according to the WSJ.

In Minnesota, Agape members have also escorted city workers as they reopened George Floyd Square, the area where Floyd was killed, to traffic. At protests, they have intervened to defuse tension between protesters and police.

Agape presents an alternative to traditional policing: as a “credible-messenger program,” the program has received three contracts from the city worth nearly $700,000. Sasha Cotton, director of the Minneapolis Office of Violence Prevention, which was created in 2018, summarized the role of such programs, which aren’t meant to replace police.

“We want [violence prevention] to be our first attempt,” she said. “And if that doesn’t work, then there are law enforcement or other aspects.”

To monitor Agape’s efforts, officials in Minneapolis will hire a third party to analyze data on city homicides, gang shootings and recidivism in hot spots. The results, which will determine whether these programs are reducing violence, will be presented to City Council next year.

Before then, voters will weigh in on a referendum to replace the police department with a new department of public safety, which would put public health above law enforcement as a solution to gun violence, CNN reports.

Agape, which has around 25 to 30 active members, has received 115 hours of training on violence prevention, de-escalation and conflict resolution from the city. The group has also received training on how to identify and assist people on drugs or facing mental health crises.

But some organizers say groups like Agape aren’t sufficiently trained to handle intense and potentially dangerous situations. According to Michelle Gross, president of Communities United Against Police Brutality, “These groups should not be acting as cop proxies.”

This summary was prepared by Eva Herscowitz, a TCR Justice Reporting intern.