President Donald Trump’s administration announced a freeze of all ongoing civil legislation, including the U.S. Department of Justice’s (DOJ) consent decree for the Minneapolis Police Department (MPD). 

The Minneapolis City Council passed the decree at the beginning of January unanimously. However, Trump’s first week in office included a freeze on all pending DOJ civil legislation, causing the MPD consent decree to stall until further notice, according to the Associated Press. 

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said in a statement that, unfortunately, the Trump administration is unwilling to work with Minneapolis on police reform, but the city will work toward the goals of the DOJ consent decree regardless. 

“From day one, I’ve made it clear the terms outlined in this consent decree will happen — with or without support from the White House,” Frey said in the statement. “Make no mistake, we have the tools, the resolve, and the community’s backing to fulfill our promise to the people of Minneapolis.”

The DOJ was not the only government institution that placed a consent decree on the MPD. 

Though the DOJ consent decree is stalled, City Council Member Robin Wonsley (Ward 2) said the Minnesota Department of Human Rights consent decree will still be enforced and in progress through the independent evaluator Effective Law Enforcement for All. For city leaders, Wonsely said the main priority now is holding MPD accountable and ensuring their compliance with the reforms. 

“We want to see absolute compliance with both the settlement agreement with the Minnesota Department of Human Rights and essentially also regardless of what happens with Trump and what he does,” Wonsley said. “We want to see the (DOJ) consent decree also be completed as well. And we don’t want to see it take 20 years.”

The DOJ’s consent decree is an additional guide to help reform Minneapolis police in areas such as decreasing the use of force, stopping racially discriminatory practices, improving officers’ interactions with the youth and more. The DOJ consent decree comes after a federal investigation by the DOJ ended in June 2023. 

Minneapolis police are currently operating under the Minnesota Department of Human Rights’ consent decree which requires an independent evaluator to monitor police reform progress. 

President of Communities United Against Police Brutality (CUAPB) Michelle Gross said it is disappointing to see the hard work community groups put towards gathering community responses for the DOJ investigation go to waste due to the federal freeze. 

“People worked (and) put a lot of effort into making sure this thing was going to happen and what it was going to look like,” Gross said. “It’s disappointing, to say the least, that it looks like now this is not going to even happen.”

Gross said CUAPB held about two dozen public meetings, went door to door informing residents, gathered around 2,300 resident testimonials about MPD and more to help the DOJ’s investigative work. 

Some specific requirements the DOJ decree outlined for MPD include “Promote the sanctity of human life as the highest priority in their activities,” and “Do not allow race, gender, ethnicity, or any other characteristic protected under Minnesota or federal law to influence any decision to use force, including the amount or type of force used,” according to the decree. 

Wonsley said she was most interested in the DOJ’s consent decree section on the MPD’s interactions with Minneapolis youth and their sections about improving police behavioral and mental health responses. 

“I know that has also been a major topic among students on campus, how are we fostering more support for mental health resources,” Wonsley said. “That’s been a priority or safety priority that I’ve worked with a number of student groups on and also other stakeholders across the city, the county, and even at the federal level around how we came and address some of the lack of suicide prevention.”

Under interactions with the youth, the decree states MPD is required to “receive training on available non-law enforcement resources to address situations involving Youth victims, witnesses, suspects, and detained individuals, including social workers embedded with MPD, if any.” 

The decree also outlines methods for improving behavioral and mental health responses such as a Mobile Crisis Response program, which would provide timely response of professionals for needs that do not warrant officer response. 

Richard Painter, University law professor and Campus Safety Coalition board member, said he hopes the city takes the DOJ consent decree seriously but also recognizes that the problems with MPD existed long before MPD officer Derek Chauvin killed Minneapolis resident George Floyd in 2020. 

Painter said that although the city and community need policing, addressing racially discriminatory practices and excessive force training are key to having beneficial policing.

“We need police, and we need more police, better-trained police, better-funded police,” Painter said. “And part of that training is to address excessive force and racial profiling as part of the training we need.”