Mpls. Hires Ex-Deputy General Attorney Sally Yates To Investigate EMT Ketamine Case
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- Known for her tough talk and standing up to President Donald Trump, former Deputy United States Attorney General Sally Yates is taking on a new investigation here in Minnesota.
"This is a person who went after the Olympic bomber in Atlanta in 1996. This is the person who went after Donald Trump," said Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey. "When it comes to making sure that we are correcting injustices, when it comes to uncovering the truth, Sally Yates is exactly what we are looking for."
Yates will spearhead a probe into the Minneapolis Police Department after some officers were accused of telling medical personnel to inject suspects with the powerful sedative ketamine. Those allegations were detailed in a draft report by the Office of Police Conduct Review, and were first reported in the Star Tribune.
Read More: Why Is Ketamine Used On Some Police Suspects By Mpls. EMTs?
"Once it was brought to our attention, Mayor Frey and I had a very deliberate conversations and the approach was we were going to take action," said Minneapolis Police Chief Medaria Arradondo.
Arradondo insists the draft report is not complete yet, but that it does show around 30 cases over the past five years where Minneapolis officers were on scene with EMS personnel when ketamine was administered.
Commonly known as a "date-rape" drug, ketamine can cause sedation and memory loss.
Before the report was published, there was no MPD policy addressing interactions between EMS and police. That has since changed.
Both the mayor and the chief say they are committed to acting on any recommendations that come from Yates in an effort to re-gain the public's trust.
The details of the city's contract with Yates were not immediately available.
According to the chief, she will have full access to any employee of the Minneapolis Police Department as well as body camera footage.
