Amir Locke killing: Case goes to county attorney's office to review for possible charges
Prosecutors have been handed the investigation into the police shooting of Amir Locke and are now reviewing the evidence for possible criminal charges.
The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) has sent its case file to the Hennepin County Attorney's Office, the attorney's office confirmed to Bring Me The News Tuesday. The attorney's office, as it does with any case, will review the evidence to determine if criminal charges are appropriate.
Attorney General Keith Ellison's office previously announced it will partner with the county attorney on this review.
The BCA in a statement to Bring Me The News said the "last reports and information about our investigation were delivered in mid-March," adding the agency will provide any additional information to the county attorney as requested.
The case handover comes nearly eight weeks after the 22-year-old was shot and killed by Minneapolis SWAT officer Mark Hanneman during a nighttime, unannounced raid. Locke was not the subject of the raid and was not even named in the search warrant application.
His 17-year-old cousin, who had been associated with the downtown Minneapolis apartment where Locke was killed, was arrested and charged in connection with a St. Paul homicide six days after the deadly police raid.
In other recent high-profile police killings, charging decisions have come at least four months after the fatal incident occurred. The two most recent cases have been exceptions: The murder of George Floyd, with the Hennepin County Attorney's Office — as portions of Minneapolis burned to the ground — announcing third-degree murder charges just four days after Floyd's death; and the killing of Daunte Wright, with former officer Kimberly Potter charged after just three days. (Though a final charge was added to the case about four months later.)
Here's a look at the timeline of those previous cases.
Kimberly Potter
Daunte Wright killed: April 11, 2021
BCA hands case to county attorney: n/a
Decision on criminal charges: April 14, 2021*
Total time: 3 days
Note: The Minnesota Attorney General's office took over the case on May 21, 2021, and on Sept. 2 that year — 144 days later — added a first-degree manslaughter charge to the case.
Derek Chauvin
George Floyd killed: May 25, 2020
BCA hands case to county attorney: n/a
Decision on criminal charges: May 29, 2020*
Total time: 4 days
Note: The Hennepin County Attorney's Office announced charges against Chauvin the same day the former officer was arrested. This came after a groundswell of destructive civil unrest, including the burning of the 3rd Precinct building on May 28, 2020. On June 3, the charges against Chauvin were upgraded to second-degree murder.
Mohamed Noor
Justine Damond Ruszczyk killed: July 15, 2017
BCA hands case to county attorney: Sept. 12, 2017
Decision on criminal charges: March 20, 2018
Total time: 248 days
Jeronimo Yanez
Philando Castile killed: July 6, 2016
BCA hands case to county attorney: Sept. 28, 2016
Decision on criminal charges: Nov. 16, 2016
Total time: 133 days
Mark Ringgenberg, Dustin Schwarze
Jamar Clark killed: Nov. 25, 2015
BCA hands case to county attorney: Feb. 10, 2016
Decision on criminal charges: March 30, 2016
Total time: 126 days
Hanneman joined the Minneapolis Police Department in 2015. During the Feb. 2 search warrant execution, he fired his service weapon less than 10 seconds after the SWAT team entered through the doorway of the dark apartment. The officers did not make themselves known prior to opening the door and entering the unit.
Locke was wrapped in a blanket and appeared to be sleeping on the couch. He had a visible gun on him, which his family says he was permitted to carry, but he was not pointing it in the direction of any officers.
The Hennepin County Attorney's Office declined to provide a possible timeline for its decision.
