Minneapolis police chief resigns after officer's shooting of Australian woman

Minneapolis police Chief Janee Harteau resigned Friday at the request of the mayor, who said she lost confidence in the chief following last week's shooting death of an unarmed Australian woman by a police officer.

In a statement released Friday, Harteau said: "I've decided I am willing to step aside to let a fresh set of leadership eyes see what more can be done for the MPD to be the very best it can be."

Minneapolis Mayor Betsy Hodges said she asked for the chief's resignation.

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Justine Damond, of Sydney, Australia, was fatally shot by police in Minneapolis on July 15. Authorities say that officers were responding to a 911 call about a possible sexual assault when she was killed.

"I've lost confidence in the chief's ability to lead us further ... it is clear that she has lost the confidence of the people of Minneapolis as well," Hodges said. "For us to continue to transform policing — and community trust in policing — we need new leadership at MPD."

Harteau, who worked her way up from the bottom of the department to police chief, said she was proud of the work she accomplished, but the shooting of 40-year-old Damond, and other incidents, "have caused me to engage in deep reflection."

"Despite the MPD's many accomplishments under my leadership over these years and my love for the city, I have to put the communities we serve first," she said.

'Actions and judgment of one individual'

Harteau was out of the city on personal time for nearly a week following Saturday's shooting of Damond, a life coach and bride-to-be who was killed by an officer responding to her 911 call.

The state is investigating the shooting.

In Harteau's first remarks on the case Thursday when she returned to work she was sharply critical of Somali-American officer Mohamed Noor while defending his training.

"The actions in question go against who we are in the department, how we train and the expectations we have for our officers," Harteau said. "These were the actions and judgment of one individual."

City council called for change

That wasn't enough for some city council members. Linea Palmisano, who represents the ward where Damond died, told her fellow council members Friday that she was "done with image control and crisis management."

She said the department has systemic problems and it was time to consider a change in leadership.

Palmisano added: "The time for talk is done. It is time for action."

A department spokesman said Harteau would not be available for an interview after Friday's announcement.

A pioneering career

Harteau has spent her career with the department, starting as a beat cop in 1987 when she was just 22. She worked her way up the ranks and in 2012 was appointed chief, becoming the city's first female, first openly gay and first Native American police chief.

But she's had a rocky tenure in the top post. Her relationship with Hodges was strained, particularly after the fatal shooting of 24-year-old Jamar Clark during a confrontation with two white police officers in 2015.

The black man's death, amid heightened tensions around the U.S., sparked protests citywide that included an 18-day occupation outside the police station on the city's north side. A U.S. Department of Justice review faulted poor communications between the mayor and the chief.

The chief and mayor butted heads again in April when Hodges blocked Harteau's promotion of Lt. John Delmonico to lead the Fourth Precinct, after the chief had already made the public announcement. Delmonico had been a critic of Hodges when he headed the police union.

And it didn't help that Harteau was out of town when Damond was killed. Harteau, who said she was backpacking in an area with limited cellphone reception, told reporters Thursday evening that it would have been "challenging" to return but that she had kept in touch with her command staff.

Harteau and her longtime patrol partner, Holly Keegel, were featured in a 1990 episode of the reality TV series Cops. The partners endured years of harassment from some male colleagues, and it escalated to the point where they felt endangered because they weren't getting help when they would call for backup.

The Minnesota Department of Human Rights upheld their discrimination and sexual harassment complaint, which led to changes in training and to discipline against some officers.

Harteau and Keegel got married in 2013 after gay marriage became legal in Minnesota. Harteau told the Star Tribune a year later that they had separated amid the strains of her being chief.

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The chief was honoured as grand marshal of the city's annual Pride Parade three years ago. But she found herself on the defensive in June when organizers asked law enforcement to minimize their participation due to tensions over the recent acquittal of St. Anthony police officer Jeronimo Yanez in the fatal shooting of another black man, Philando Castile, in the St. Paul suburb of Falcon Heights last summer.

She said she was "beyond disappointed" that she was not consulted beforehand, but later persuaded the organizers to welcome LGBT officers after all.