Public Safety Beyond Policing

We fund public safety by investing in the things that create stability. Every single person in Minneapolis deserves to be safe, no matter where they live or who they are.  Instead, our police are tasked with responding to problems that they are ill-equipped to handle. I will continue to push for a complete transformation of policing and mass incarceration in Minneapolis.

In my first term, I’ve worked toward expanding public safety services by:

  • Commissioning a citywide analysis of public safety capital and assets as the basis for developing a citywide resource allocation aligned with our goals and priorities. 

  • Calling for a Department of Public Safety as a response to MPD’s murder of Amir Locke in February 2022. This plan laid out a blueprint for the plan later announced by the Mayor and implemented as the Office of Community Safety.

  • Bringing accountability and public transparency to the Office of Community Safety’s work and areas of concern during its first year.

  • Extending the contract for the Behavioral Crisis Response team from a one-year to a two-year contract, ensuring that this extremely successful response model has stability at the city.

  • Supporting the expansion of community safety contracts with groups specialized in deescalation, unarmed security, and social services.

This term, I will:

  • Continue to work with community and national experts to expand the role of unarmed public safety services.

  • Expand the Violence Prevention Fund and implement participatory budgeting in how funds are allocated. Communities that are most impacted by violence should be at the table to lead and receive resources.

  • Establish a Victim Services Initiative to support residents after traumatic experiences.

  • Take advantage of new state funds to invest in prevention and treatment programs for opioid addiction.

  • Expand the City’s diversion pathways program and collaborate with Hennepin County to increase resources to youth who have a high risk of entering the criminal justice system.

  • Expand programs that support residents impacted most by gun violence, including restorative services, mental health support and relocation funds.