Violence Erupts After Deadly Officer Involved Shooting Sunday in Brooklyn Center

(KNSI) — Police, escorted by the Minnesota National Guard members, arrived in Brooklyn Center Sunday as the mayor declared a curfew late Sunday night after a 20-year-old man was shot and killed by police during a traffic stop Sunday in Brooklyn Center.

Relatives identified the man as Daunte Wright. Wright was stopped Sunday for a traffic violation. Reports say Wright had a warrant out for his arrest. Police allegedly ordered Wright out of the car. They say he got back in the car, and that was when he was shot.

Police say Wright drove away, crashing several blocks away, where he was pronounced dead. A female passenger in the car suffered non-life-threatening injuries.

As news of the shooting spread, crowds began to gather, most were peaceful, but as that crowd disbursed, others moved in, waving Black Lives Matter flags, blasting music, and smashing squad car windshields. Shots were also fired at the Brooklyn Park Police Department Headquarters. Bullets went through the front door of the building and into the lobby. No one was hurt.

Police used flash-bang grenades and chemical munitions to get the crowd to disburse after widespread looting and violence were reported.

It was also a deadly and chaotic night in Minneapolis, as widespread looting was reported there. Two people were also shot to death in south Minneapolis overnight. One person was found with a gunshot wound in a crashed car. Another victim was found a short distance away, also shot to death in a crashed car. A third person showed up at a hospital, who also had gunshot wounds.

Operation Safety Net, which is a coalition of several law enforcement agencies put into place to stand guard and keep the peace during and after the Derek Chauvin trial, overnight activated the Minnesota State Patrol, and “everyone they can” in response to the violence, according to Public Safety Commissioner John Harrington.

___