Minneapolis City Council advances plan to dismantle police dept

Minneapolis, June 27 The Minneapolis City Council has unanimously approved a proposal that would amend the citys charter to allow the city police department to be dismantled, it was reported.

The 12-0 vote on Friday is the latest push to hold law enforcement accountable after the death of George Floyd, an unarmed black man who was killed on May 25 in an encounter with the city's police, The Hill news website said in a report.

The proposal's passage is the first step toward making the decision a ballot measure in the November election.

The proposal would replace the police department with a Department of Community Safety and Violence Prevention, "which will have responsibility for public safety services prioritizing a holistic, public health-oriented approach".

The head of this department would be somebody with "non-law-enforcement experience in community safety services, including but not limited to public health and/or restorative justice approaches", the news report quoted the proposal as saying.

The move from the Council comes after massive protests in Minneapolis and at least 140 cities across the US following Floyd's death.

Several cities across the country have banned chokeholds and reduced police department budgets this month as a result.

Meanwhile, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, a Democrat, has previously said he doesn't support dismantling the police, criticizing the proposal as lacking clarity and being rushed.

( With inputs from IANS )