St. Paul, Minn – The American Civil Liberties Union of Minnesota calls for accountability and transparency during the investigation into the killing of Chase Tuseth by the Mankato Police in the early morning on December 31.
The following statement can be attributed to Charles Samuelson, Executive Director of the ACLU-MN:
The ACLU-MN calls for transparency in the investigation of the killing of Chase Tuseth. In 2016, there were 14 fatal shootings in Minnesota, with Chase Tuseth being the last. The first step in interrupting this cycle must be urgent reforms in how police and communities interact. As a society we cannot allow people to be killed by the police for being disorderly, or drunk, or for having a broken taillight. None of these crimes would warrant a death sentence in any state, let alone in Minnesota where we don't even have the death penalty. We acknowledge the tragedy of Chase Tuseth's death, and the death of others. Human life should be valued by officers above all else. We understand that officers have an incredibly tough and sometimes dangerous job but policing procedures must change to find better ways to deescalate tense situations that result in drastically fewer police shootings.
The ACLU-MN is asking for full transparency and accountability moving forward. This includes but is not limited to a release of any footage and transparency in the investigation by the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension.
The ACLU-MN is a non-profit organization that works to defend the civil liberties of all Minnesotans. Learn more at www.aclu-mn.org
