Will Democrats and Republicans be able to agree on a package of police reforms as they try again in this second legislative session of 2020? House Speaker, Democrat Melissa Hortman says, “More rules and more training are not going to change lives. What we need are consequences for failure to live up to the standards.”
Senate Republican Majority Leader Paul Gazelka won’t say how close the two sides are in negotiations — but he does say Republicans will not agree to de-funding or dismantling the police, increasing the attorney general’s power or allowing felons to vote. Gazelka says Republicans *have* offered changes to police arbitration procedures. On the issue of banning choke holds and officers’ duty to intervene, he says there’s movement but both sides are still discussing those issues.