Minneapolis police budget expands post-Floyd death

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) – The Minneapolis Police Department’s budget has expanded despite calls to reduce funding for law enforcement in the wake of George Floyd’s death.

The Star Tribune reports that the department currently has a $196 million budget, up about $3 million from the beginning of 2020.

Floyd, a Black man, died that May after a white Minneapolis police officer pressed his knee into his neck for almost nine minutes. The incident prompted nationwide protests with rallying cries of “defund the police.”

Part of the department’s budget increase is attributable to federal COVID-19 relief aid. Costs also have risen, and even though the agency has lost about 260 officers, city officials still budget for an average of 756 to 750 officers.