5 Minneapolis mayoral candidates say they’d discipline Police Chief O’Hara for federal raid; Frey disagrees

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey is defending his police chief after all of his opponents said they would discipline him for being on the scene of a federal raid this month on the city’s south side.

At a forum Wednesday, Frey’s five challengers said they would support holding Chief Brian O’Hara “accountable for working with ICE” on the raid.

On June 3, masked federal agents and armored vehicles rolled up on a Mexican restaurant to execute a search warrant as part of an investigation into what federal officials called a “transnational criminal organization” suspected of drug and human trafficking and money laundering.

The presence of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents alarmed the Latino and immigrant hub, and sparked fears of an immigration raid.

Word quickly spread on social media, and some media outlets, including the Minnesota Star Tribune, initially reported that ICE was conducting a raid. That turned out to be inaccurate.

Although ICE agents assisted, the search was part of a drug bust that police said seized 900 pounds of methamphetamine and did not center on immigration.

O’Hara has said the Police Department wasn’t involved in the operation’s planning or execution. But he said that about an hour after it began, police were asked to help with crowd control and de-escalation.

During Wednesday’s forum hosted by members of the city’s Native community, the six mayoral candidates were asked, “Would you support holding chief of police O’Hara accountable for working with ICE on the raid on Lake and Bloomington?”

Asked to hold up placards answering “yes” or “no,” Brenda Short, Jazz Hampton, state Sen. Omar Fateh, the Rev. DeWayne Davis and Kevin Dwire raised “yes” signs.

Frey looked puzzled by the question and did not hold up his placard.

Campaign spokesman Darwin Forsyth said Frey was bewildered by the question because the premise was factually inaccurate. But, Forsyth said, Frey’s answer would have been “no.”

“No serious mayor would commit to disciplining the chief for something that never happened,” Frey said in a statement. “The facts are clear — it wasn’t an immigration raid, and the MPD was not involved in its execution.

“No chief will work for a mayor who misrepresents their conduct for political gain.”

In a statement, Davis said: “MPD showed up at federal raid that included ICE officers, and we deserve to know what commitments Chief O’Hara is taking to make sure that our officers aren’t knowingly or unknowingly aiding ICE.

“I’m disappointed that O’Hara and the Mayor are spending more time assuring us they did nothing wrong than asking what how we got here and how we can do better when masked, camouflaged federal officers with bear cats [police trucks] and long guns show up unannounced in our neighborhoods.”

O’Hara and Frey have called the militarized operation “tone deaf,” but they were also critical of politicians they accused of stoking panic at the scene.

Several mayoral candidates showed up at the raid and quickly condemned it on social media.

Fateh, who was among them, called the operation “blatant fascism.” He accused the MPD of cooperating with ICE and said it would be “unconscionable” for police to even help with crowd control.

In a statement Friday, O’Hara said: “I understand there is significant fear and anxiety in our community around the rhetoric of civil immigration enforcement, and I recognize how damaging that fear can be to the Minneapolis Police Department’s mission to keep all people safe.

“That’s why I am very disappointed that some continue to refer to what happened on June 3rd as an immigration raid — it simply was not. No arrests were made at that location and continuing to mischaracterize the incident only fuels unnecessary fear and spreads misinformation.”

The mayoral candidates were also asked whether they thought the MPD and O’Hara’s actions violated city ordinance. Minneapolis is a “sanctuary city” with an ordinance barring its police from helping enforce federal immigration laws. Officers cannot initiate stops or detain or arrest people solely based on their immigration status.

Frey answered “no,” and four of his challengers replied “yes.” Dwire did not answer.

Besides O’Hara, Assistant Police Chief Katie Blackwell and several other MPD officers responded to the scene of the federal operation.

Days later, Blackwell reiterated in a memo to department employees that they’re not allowed to assist with immigration enforcement or crowd control.

MPD spokesman Garrett Parten said police will not respond if a peaceful crowd forms during an immigration operation. But, he said, officers will respond to reports of property damage or life-threatening situations.

“That is our duty,” Parten said. “We have a sworn duty to the people of Minneapolis.”

Fateh said in a statement that Frey and O’Hara overstepped the spirit of the city’s separation ordinance. He said a “lookback” on their actions is needed.

“It is also important to know what the mayor knew, when he knew it, and what decisions he made, as he has sole control over MPD,“ Fateh said.

”As a hostile Trump administration militarizes our neighborhoods, this type of local accountability is more important than ever.“

He said he would work to strengthen the ordinance and ensure consequences if any officers violate it.

Two days after the federal raid, the City Council voted to investigate whether MPD violated the city’s ordinance with its presence.

“Assisting with crowd control is assisting ICE,” Council Member Jason Chavez, who went to the raid, has said and condemned the police presence.

During a briefing Monday on the city ordinance governing immigration enforcement, Chavez asked an MPD assistant chief what police will do if, as “collateral damage,” people are arrested during federal operations.

Assistant Police Chief Christopher Gaiters said officers would need to disengage and contact their supervisor, who would then relay the information to their superiors.

“We have no interest in engaging in activities that concern enforcement of immigration status,” Gaiters said.