A longtime Minneapolis resident and crime victim is speaking out about crime. She was shocked as nearly a dozen suspects were involved—but even more so by the response from the 911 operator and the Minneapolis Police Department.
WATCH THE VIDEO:
In speaking with Liz Collin on her podcast, Katie Hoffman explained how things were when she first arrived in Minneapolis twenty years ago. “I found myself in Minnesota in 2000 and I felt so grateful, so blessed to have the opportunity to be able to move to Minnesota. I love Minneapolis, love St. Paul and here we are today. I’ve been in Northeast for about 20 years now,” Hoffman said.
But like many other Minneapolis residents, Hoffman said she noticed a drastic change in her neighborhood after the George Floyd riots. She expalined that it started with homeless encampments in her neighborhood. Then a bike was stolen out of her garage, and just a few weeks ago, it was her car.
Hoffman told Collin, “I still can’t believe it. I heard some noise in the street and this is about 15 feet from my bedroom window. I looked out and there were about 12 to 14 individuals surrounding the vehicle.”
Hoffman’s car wasn’t the only one that was stolen. She explained how “there were three other stolen vehicles that surrounded our vehicle—and of course I was in shock. I called 911 shaking like a leaf.”
But Hoffman was also struck by the response from the 911 dispatcher.
Hoffman explained that the dispatcher asked for a description of the suspects and that, “I shared the description—and she went on to say she did not ask for the color of their skin.”
“I asked, ‘Can I please have officers here immediately?’ I was frightened. I thought it would have taken two more minutes for them to enter this home and something really bad could have went down. She said we normally don’t send officers out on calls like this. It’s happening so frequently.”
Despite the dispatcher’s advisement, Hoffman said police officers arrived about 15 minutes later.
“They were very kind officers. I appreciate their work so much. They arrived and I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. The dispatcher also said they were heading north on a neighboring street of mine. I said, I think you can still get the car. You can retrieve the car. I know exactly where they’re heading. They’re heading north. And they said they are no longer able to pursue these individuals because of racial profiling,” Hoffman explained.
She also said, “I feel like crime is almost being encouraged. That’s how I feel and since this incident… I am now looking out my windows all night long, every window and I automatically wake up at 4 a.m. now every single day and I search outside.”
Hoffman has been in touch with her City Council representative, Elliot Payne, via text messages. Hoffman shared those text messages with Alpha News, which mentioned a homeless encampment, people defecating out in the open in front of kids, and syringes left on the sidewalks.
“Zero response,” Hoffman said of her pleas to Payne.
Adding insult to injury, the Minneapolis City Council recently approved a nearly 7% spike in property taxes this year. Nonetheless, Hoffman still holds hope for change.
“I do not give up easily on things that I feel deeply about. I’m very passionate about the city. I strongly believe if we had an adjustment with the current leadership, we could have a beautiful community again. It would take just a couple flips and we could turn this back around. And I hope for that every single day,” Hoffman said.
Dr. JC Chaix
Dr. JC Chaix is an editor, educator, and an expert in media studies. He wrote and directed the Alpha News documentary "The Fall of Minneapolis" and "Minnesota v We the People."
