A group of Minneapolis city leaders are calling for an independent review of a recent neighbor dispute that ended with one man hospitalized after being shot and another man in custody.

As reported by 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS last week, Davis Moturi says he repeatedly called police about threats made by his neighbor, 54-year-old John Sawchak.

Many city council members are saying a separate review is necessary in this case. Prosecutors say Sawchak shot Moturi after a months-long dispute. Video shows Moturi pruning a tree near the property line and then a pop is heard before he falls to the ground.

However, it took days for officers to arrest Sawchak after prosecutors charged him with the shooting and after city council members called for police to take action.

Moturi also says for nearly a year, he had been reaching out for help from Minneapolis police regarding harassment and threats from Sawchak. On Sunday, Police Chief Brian O’Hara also apologized, saying the department “failed” Moturi.

During Thursday’s meeting, council members called for an independent review of the case in addition to the internal review.

“Seeing another Black man not be delivered the justice that they deserved and to see our police department or leadership initially blame said victim for the cause of their near-death experience — it was disheartening to hear that our actions to bring attention to eight months of inaction was labeled as political,” Ward 2 Council Member Robin Wonsley said.

“Neglect is what was done, neglect is a form of police brutality, you neglected our community,” said Toshira Garraway, an activist.

Outside council chambers, several activists laid out three demands in response to these developments, including calling for an independent review, the firing of anyone involved in what they called a failed response, and the city to assist the Moturi family financially.

“We need to be able to make sure that everyone is accountable to the failure that nearly killed a black man in Minneapolis,” said Jaylani Hussein, an activist and the executive director of CAIR.

Early Thursday afternoon, a spokesperson for Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey issued the following statement regarding an independent review into the shooting:

“Mayor Frey fully supports an independent review of this incident. The mayor and City are committed to always doing better, and this means closely examining past actions and finding where there may be ways to improve and grow.

“The mayor extends his condolences to Davis Moturi, his wife, Caroline, and their family and friends. The safety of our residents is a top priority and any form of violence or hate speech is completely unacceptable and does not align with who we are as a community.

Brian O’Hara will continue to be the Minneapolis Police Chief.”

Todd Barnette, the Minneapolis Community Safety Commissioner, added, “I am not going to fire Chief O’Hara.”

Barnette says O’Hara has done a lot for the department and he’s not firing him because it’s important to look at the totality of his work.

“I’m committed to this, the chief is committed to this, and we’re looking forward to seeing this process through to the end,” Barnette said.

Barnette adds that he does fully support a review of what happened.

“I do believe that having an independent review of this incident will help build the trust back with the community.”