Our first responders and our residents deserve better when it is literally their lives on the line.
As we enter a holiday weekend it doesn’t feel like a time of celebration. Wednesday’s shooting was horrific. Two innocent people are dead, neighbors of the shooter. But for the violent, selfish acts of one person, they would be alive today.
Then there are the injured, including three police officers, two employees of the building, and a mother in the presence of her four-year-old daughter. The physical and emotional scars they will carry from this senseless crime are heartrending.
I also think of the terror the Shoreline Plaza residents must have experienced as the shooting unfolded, not to mention the necessary but real disruption of being displaced overnight while the crime scene was processed by the BCA. I hope to meet with impacted residents as soon as practical, and am grateful they are currently back in their homes. Thank you to the city’s emergency response team, the Red Cross, Salvation Army, and others who have been providing assistance and coordination.
The only solace is that things could have been much worse if not for the heroic officers of MPD, who responded to the chaotic scene in less than 2 minutes. They didn’t flee from the sounds of gunfire, but followed it; they put their own lives on the line to save others. As with the civilian victims, I cannot imagine the fear the families of these officers experienced when they heard their loved ones had been shot. That’s the call every first responder family dreads, and I will be visiting the First Precinct to extend my thanks and appreciation for their courage and service.
Finally, we need strategic, hard conversations about public safety across all jurisdictions. First of all, no one is more responsible for this tragedy than the shooter, but residents should not have had to live in the presence of this threatening individual for so long. The various court filings highlighted since the incident make clear that the perpetrator had been a menace for months, including a criminal case opened against him just two weeks ago in relation to brandishing a weapon in the building. How are county prosecutors reviewing and assessing potentially dangerous individuals in our community? And if a complaint doesn’t have enough weight to charge, what other coordinated jurisdictional levers do we have to require help when the need is clear?
Next, we also need to give close scrutiny to our state’s existing gun laws. Gun violence is a scourge, and we all deserve to live safe and secure in our homes. In the short eight months I’ve been in this office, we’ve now had mass shootings in three different locations: Uptown, 19th and Nicollet, and now 15th & Nicollet. That is far, far too many, and I’ve begun reaching out to fellow elected officials to talk about how we can jump-start the process of reform.
Also, it is a great disservice to our public servants and the public that we do not provide our first responders with adequate training facilities. An event like this impacts the entire public safety ecosystem, and the message they’ve gotten from council this year is that their training, professional development, health, and wellness are not a priority, regardless of the fact that ELEFA, our settlement agreement monitor, told us we must upgrade our training infrastructure.
Our first responders and our residents deserve better when it is literally their lives on the line. It’s time for the council to view itself as a partner and not an adversary of the administration in this process. The health and safety of our residents and our city employees are too important to do otherwise.
None of this is going to happen overnight, but I am optimistic we in Minneapolis are the right folks to lead. We have experienced first-hand the pain of anger and hate erupting into gun violence against innocent victims time and time again.
So, as we head into the weekend, let’s hold our families, friends, and neighbors close, because events like this remind us that life is precious.
Via constituent newsletter
Congratulating and thanking the MPD and other first responders is proper. Here is a quote from your commentary: “How are county prosecutors reviewing and assessing potentially dangerous individuals in our community?” This, in my opinion, is the EXACT question that needs to be asked by you and the rest of the city council. If the laws regarding firearms already on the books are NOT BEING ENFORCED, then why would more laws make it any better??? It simply will not. Please dispense with the concern about “gun violence” and put a lot more emphasis on making it possible for people who want help for their addiction or mental illness troubles to get help.
Zero new gun laws are needed.
My guns aren’t violent and I’ve been a hunter for many years. I now own guns to protect myself from the degenerates and feral youth that seem to be more prevalent in today’s society. Now here comes the part where liberals will go crazy. I think the loss of common sense and moral degradation is due to liberal policy’s. When was the last conservative in the mayor’s office orthe city council. Can’t we all just get along?
Did “liberal policy’s” make Justin Eichorn a pedophile?
I think you are off topic.