Conditions in Minneapolis continue to deteriorate after three people were shot to death in three separate incidents Saturday night.
In one of those incidents, a Metro Transit Police officer wounded the suspect.
“The night’s third homicide happened just after 2 a.m. in downtown Minneapolis. Metro Transit police officers in the area of Hennepin Avenue and S. 5th Street encountered a scene in which a man fatally shot another man,” the Star Tribune reported. “A Metro Transit officer pursued the suspect and shot him in the leg.”
The two other homicides were linked to two separate illegal street racing gatherings in the city, which, according to Minneapolis police spokesman John Elder, is a growing problem in the city plagued by violence.
“This isn’t just two cars driving down the road trying to see who crosses the finish line first,” Elder said. “These are people that are engaging in dangerous and exhibition driving that threatens the public safety and the personal safety of those in the area. It’s criminal – the bottom line is, it’s criminal.”
Groups gather to watch the illegal street racing, sometimes lighting off fireworks and assaulting police who arrive on the scene, the report said.
One of the street racing homicide victims was identified as 19-year-old Vanessa Jensen. The other was a teenage boy who was struck with a stray bullet after two street racers’ heated argument turned into a shootout.
All of this occurred as violent protestors once again took to the streets of Minneapolis over the weekend.
Winston Smith, 32, was shot and killed by deputies who were members of a U.S. Marshals fugitive squad Thursday. He reportedly produced a handgun and fired it at the Marshals when they tried to serve a warrant for his failure to appear at a sentencing hearing in May. He was scheduled to be sentenced for felony firearm possession.
Minneapolis has been home to nearly nonstop violence since the George Floyd was killed by former Minneapolis Police officer Derek Chauvin, who has now been convicted of murder.
Mayor Jacob Frey, who initially pandered to the violent rioters, is now calling for an end to the violence.
“All of Minneapolis, from residents to police to elected officials, must unite to stop this intolerable violence,” he reportedly said Saturday night. “I am lockstep with Chief [Medaria] Arradondo, working to secure additional resources to immediately bring perpetrators of violence to justice and ensure public safety.”
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Pete D’Abrosca is a contributor at The Minnesota Sun and The Star News Network. Follow Pete on Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
