In a day of ‘unimaginable violence,’ Minneapolis police officers honored for courage

Steady cracks of gunfire echoed and sirens wailed as Minneapolis police officers exited their squad cars on Blaisdell Avenue. It was May 30, 2024, just a few minutes after officer Jamal Mitchell was shot in the head by a homicide suspect.

“Where? Where’s the guy shooting?” officer Luke Kittock asked civilians crouched behind a vehicle before they pointed in the direction of Mustafa Mohamed, who continued to fire indiscriminately after fatally shooting Mitchell.

“Move! Move!” Kittock, armed with a rifle, shouted as police ran toward the shooter while returning fire. Not long afterward, Mohamed was dead.

For acting without hesitation in the face of danger and tragedy, Kittock and his fellow officers who responded to the chaotic scene that day were awarded the Medal of Honor on Wednesday night at the Ukrainian American Community Center during the Minneapolis Police Department’s annual ceremony.

Chief Brian O’Hara read a description for each officer’s acts on that chaotic day.

Fellow officer Eric Withanom moved up with a ballistic shield, while officer Nicholas Kapinos also fired with his handgun. Kittock and Kapinos took down Mohamed, allowing officers to rush to provide medical aid to Mitchell.

“This was a day of unimaginable violence that revealed the true spirit of service, courage, sacrifice and compassion,” O’Hara said at the ceremony as the officers stood on stage.

Mohamed had shot and killed two people earlier that day in the apartment complex at 2221 Blaisdell Av. The two killed in the apartment were Mohamed Aden and Osman Jimale. Mitchell was responding to the shooting and had gone to check on Mohamed in the street, thinking he had been shot himself and needed help.

Others given the award were Lt. Dave Garman, who went to Mitchell’s side and took off Mitchell’s vest to attempt lifesaving efforts along with help from other officers. Another recipient was Alexandra De Lugo, who helped transport Mitchell to the hospital by ambulance.

De Lugo and a firefighter rushed Mitchell to the hospital, but he ultimately died from his injuries.

Mitchell was posthumously given a Medal of Honor on Wednesday night, along with a Purple Heart and officer of the year for the Fifth Precinct.

On Thursday, Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty’s office announced that Kittock and Kapinos acted lawfully and would not be charged for using deadly force to kill Mohamed and “end the threat of death or great bodily harm to themselves and others.” In a news release she thanked the efforts of the responding officers, “who acted quickly to stop Mr. Mohamed from hurting anyone else,” firefighters who provided aid, and an unnamed civilian who attempted to help and was shot.

“All of our thoughts are with the loved ones of Officer Mitchell, who was killed as he tried to provide aid, along with the families of Mohamed Aden and Osman Jimale,” Moriarty said.

Mitchell’s longtime partner, Tori Myslajek, looked on in tears as O’Hara and Mayor Jacob Frey lauded the late officer’s bravery. In an interview following the ceremony, Myslajek thanked O’Hara and the department for their support in the past year for herself and their four children.

“All the officers have been so kind, and it’s such a good community,” she said.

Myslajek added that Mitchell was “always about serving the community and making a difference.” The officer had previously worked in New Haven, Conn., and wanted to make a bigger difference by taking the job with Minneapolis police, she added.

The auditorium was packed with officers’ families, dozens of officers and some non-officers receiving awards for categories such as lifesaving, “excellence in tactics and de-escalation,” and “excellence in investigation.”

O’Hara noted that, even on the night of the celebration, he saw the number in attendance shrink as some officers left to respond to the spike in shootings that took place across the city on Wednesday.

Additional medals of honor were given to a team of officers who saved lives during the civil unrest following the murder of George Floyd. The officers made their way through a hostile crowd to rescue a man who had been stabbed close to his heart, O’Hara said. They also rescued a person who had been seriously injured with a blunt object by putting him on an “improvised cart” to get him to safety.

The officer of the year award was given to officer Chad Fuchs from the Second Precinct.

His 2024 accomplishments included apprehending burglary suspects in northeast Minneapolis, stopping a “suicide by cop” scenario and saving a 2-month-old infant who was suffering from fentanyl poisoning. Assistant Chief Katie Blackwell called Fuchs a “quiet leader and a trusted mentor officer.”