Contents:

• McManus Petition Signatures
• CUAPB Statement on Selection of William Mcmanus as Police Chief

MCMANUS PETITION AVAILABLE--HELP US COLLECT SIGNATURES
After attending meetings over the last two days on the appointment of William McManus for Minneapolis police chief, we are even more convinced that he is the right person for the job. During Tuesday night's public meeting at Sabathani, we asked a question about how he would deal with police officers who have a large number of complaints against them. We cited the example of one police officer who has had 26 complaints against him with the CRA but who is still on the force. Mr. McManus impressed us with his answer that 3 or 4 complaints against an officer would raise a red flag and that he would take those complaints seriously. He made a point of saying this was "not just lip service."

Despite his proven track record and efforts to reach out broadly to the community, there is an alarming level of resistance among some city council members to his appointment. This "politics as usual" is NOT what the community needs. If you believe as we do that William McManus is the best candidate for Minneapolis police chief, please help us gather signatures on a petition to the city council. You can sign our online petition at http://www.PetitionOnline.com/CUAPB01/petition.html or you can print out the attached petition (in Word) and circulate it.

We need printed petitions back by the evening of Wednesday, January 14th. Call us at 612-874-7867 to arrange a pick up. You can also drop off your signatures at our office at 2104 Stevens Avenue on Wednesday, January 14th between 5:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. Petition signatures will be presented to the city council on Thursday, January 15th.

CUAPB STATEMENT ON SELECTION OF WILLIAM MCMANUS AS POLICE CHIEF
Communities United Against Police Brutality looks to the changing of the guard at the Minneapolis Police Department with great hope. The past nine years under the previous chief have been a time of little supervision and oversight of police officers, with a resulting high level of brutality and abuse of authority. We have researched the history and reputation of Mr. William McManus and he seems well qualified to serve as chief. He banned racial profiling, with some effectiveness, and took other actions to ease racial tensions in an almost completely segregated city. He also banned shootings from and into moving vehicles, which had been common practice.

The most important task of any police chief is to develop and maintain the culture of the department. From the onset of the search for Minneapolis police chief, we have recommended that an outside candidate could best reform the brutal, lawless Minneapolis Police Department culture. William McManus meets this criterion and has a successful history as a reformer. Further, he is a skilled and able administrator. We would regard Mr. McManus' appointment to the position of police chief as a positive step for the community and encourage the City Council to confirm him.

Needless to say, we will be monitoring Mr. McManus' performance closely as he establishes his leadership within the Minneapolis Police Department. We will continue to demand accountability and high standards of professionalism from the Minneapolis Police Department and its chief.

Communities United Against Police Brutality
2104 Stevens Avenue
Minneapolis, MN 55404
Hotline 612-874-STOP (7867)