Mpls. Mayor, Police Chief Hold Round Table On Policing Changes

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- After a volatile year, the new mayor and police chief of Minneapolis are showing a united front for the new year.

Mayor Jacob Frey and Minneapolis Police Chief Medaria Arradondo led a community round table Thursday at North Market to discuss rebuilding trust and accountability in the city.

The two officials say they hope to make progress by working with the community to implement policy.

One of their current key focuses is on changing the police department's policy on the use of deadly force. There's discussion on changing it to require officers to use other tactics first in encounters.

There was also discussion on disciplining officers who do not use the body cameras properly and requiring officers to walk a beat, thereby allowing them to better know the communities they serve.

"It's not just important enough to have a cop on every city street," Arradondo said, "but it's important that our community members absolutely get to know [our officers] and our officers get to build effective relationships with our community."

The police chief stressed that having a "unified city" is key if Minneapolis is to move forward.