The death of a 22-year-old man who was shot during a house search brings back memories of the case of paramedic Breonna Taylor in March 2020. The American police are once again being criticized.
Cars blocked a street in protest at the February 4 killing of Amir Locke, a 22-year-old black man, by Minneapolis police officers.
(dpa)
The death of a black man in a police operation in the American metropolis of Minneapolis has caused dismay in the United States. The 22-year-old Amir Locke was shot dead by police officers on Wednesday when they entered an apartment on the basis of a search warrant. Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey on Friday imposed a moratorium on search warrants that don’t require officers to be at the door first. The victim’s parents made serious allegations to the police. They executed their son just as he woke up from a deep sleep.
The city released body camera video of the incident. It shows the officers gaining access to the apartment and then loudly announcing their presence. A few seconds later, a police officer kicks a sofa. The young man, who is lying on the sofa wrapped in a blanket, then begins to move. He has a pistol in his hand. An officer then immediately fired several shots.
According to the bailiff, Locke died from multiple gunshot wounds. The search warrant was in connection with investigations into a murder case. The name of the 22-year-old was not mentioned in the search warrant, it said. It is unclear to what extent he is related to these investigations. He was reportedly staying at a friend’s home.
A relative of the 22-year-old who was killed called on the Minneapolis police on February 4 to take responsibility for the incident.
Civil rights activists criticized the way the search was conducted. The case commemorates the killing of Breonna Taylor. Due to a search warrant in March 2020, the police apparently broke down the door to the 26-year-old paramedic’s apartment without warning. Taylor was hit by multiple bullets. The death of George Floyd in a police operation finally led to major protests against racism and police brutality in the United States in 2020, and Taylor was also repeatedly reminded.