Minneapolis Police Chief Responds to City Council’s Push to Defund Them: ‘I Will Not Abandon’ My Obligation to Protect

Minneapolis Police Chief Medaria Arradondo said that even if the city council moves ahead with their plan to dismantle his department, he won’t abandon his duty to protect the people.

Arradondo gave a press conference on Wednesday to speak about the continued social unrest and calls for racial justice after the death of George Floyd. When the event opened up to questions, Arradondo was asked for his thoughts about the “defund the police” movement among protesters, specifically the city council’s push to disband them.

“As chief, I am obligated to ensuring the public safety of our 400,000 plus residents,” Arradondo said. “I will not abandon that. Our elected officials certainly can certainly engage in those conversations, but until there is a robust plan that reassures the safety of our residents, I will not leave them. I will not leave them behind.”

The “defund the police” movement was a recurring topic throughout the Q&A, for Arradondo was eventually asked if his officers are worried about a “slow down” in their law enforcement capacity while reform debates continue.

“There is no doubt that what our city has experienced over the past two weeks has been traumatic for not only our residents but certainly our men and women in this department,” said the chief. “So I have to make sure that they have spaces to heal as well, but I will tell you if I had conversations over the past couple of weeks, and through all of these challenging dynamics, they continue to show up. I’ve said before that hope is here and I’ve seen it play out in our cities.”

Arradondo continued by expressing his hope that Minneapolis will continue to process the unrest over Floyd’s death, and that the police will “move forward in collaboration with our community.”

Watch above, via Fox News.