Groups rally to urge justice for Amir Locke, ban of no-knock warrants

Gracie Stockton KSTP

Sunday, a group of demonstrators gathered outside of the Minnesota governor’s residence to push for change after the fatal police shooting of 22-year-old Amir Locke.

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Locke was shot and killed by a Minneapolis police SWAT team serving a no-knock search warrant in the early hours of Feb. 2 at Bolero Flats Apartments.

Black Lives Matter Minnesota and Families Supporting Families Against Police rallied together Sunday afternoon voicing one of their goals in light of Locke’s death: Urging lawmakers to ban no-knock warrants.

Read our full coverage of Amir Locke’s death and the no-knock warrant debate

“They’re hurting us in our community and we just want it to stop,” Toshira Garraway of FSFAPV said. “We don’t want to hurt anybody. We don’t hate police but we want them to stop hurting our families and our community and we want them to be held accountable when they do.”

Activists outside the residence implored the governor to stand in solidarity with families and support legislative changes to eliminate no-knock warrants.

The organizations are also demanding the officers involved in Locke’s death be arrested and charged, as well as calling for the resignation of Interim Minneapolis Police Chief Amelia Huffman.

In Minneapolis, Mayor Jacob Frey has placed a moratorium on no-knock warrants and the city council is debating the procedure’s future.

Last week, warrants from Minneapolis and St. Paul in relation to the fatal raid were unsealed. Locke was not named in any of those warrants.