Minneapolis NAACP sues city over police spying allegations
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The Minneapolis NAACP sued the city of Minneapolis on Wednesday over allegations that police officers used phony social media accounts to spy on activists without a legitimate public safety purpose.
The lawsuit, filed in federal court, alleges that the Minneapolis Police Department discriminated against the NAACP and violated its members’ constitutional rights when it singled out the organization for surveillance “on the basis of race.”
“These are accounts that are supposed to be used for official investigations. There were none,” Liliana Zaragoza, director of the University of Minnesota’s Racial Justice Law Clinic and attorney for the NAACP, told the Star Tribune.
Minneapolis officials have denied the allegation of social media abuse since it first appeared in a scathing Minnesota Department of Human Rights report alleging racially biased policing a year ago. But state Human Rights Commissioner Rebecca Lucero stood by the allegation last month when both sides announced a court-enforceable settlement that calls for a series of reforms for the police department in the city where George Floyd was murdered by an officer nearly three years ago.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/minneapolis-naacp-sues-city-over-police-spying-allegations/ar-AA1aoGVf
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