Minneapolis Drive-By Leaves 2 National Guardsmen Injured as Imminent Chauvin Decision Threatens to Ignite City
Unidentified assailants in a drive-by shooting Sunday fired at a team of Minnesota National Guard and Minneapolis Police Department officials keeping the peace in Minneapolis during the ongoing Derek Chauvin trial.
Two Guardsmen received “minor injuries” in the attack, which occurred about 4:20 a.m. near the intersection of the city’s Penn and Broadway avenues, according to a Minnesota National Guard news release.
The shooting occurred on or about 4:19 a.m., as a light-colored SUV fired several shots at an @MinnesotaOSN security team providing neighborhood security. No team members were seriously injured.
— MN National Guard (@MNNationalGuard) April 18, 2021
The attackers rode a “light-colored” SUV when they opened fire at the security team tasked with safeguarding the neighborhood.
There were no serious injuries in the incident.
One of the guardsmen who sustained “minor” injuries was hurt by shattered glass. He was taken to a local hospital for additional treatment.
The other guardsman received “superficial injuries,” the release stated.
The team was deployed to the neighborhood as part of Operation Safety Net, the news release stated.
The operation is a joint undertaking by the city’s police department, the Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office, the state of Minnesota and local authorities “to protect people, freedom of speech and property [in Minneapolis] during the Derek Chauvin trial as well as the aftermath of the police involved shooting of Daunte Wright in Brooklyn Center,” the release states.
“I am relieved to know none of our Guardsmen were seriously injured,” Minnesota National Guard Adjutant General Maj. Gen. Shawn Manke said in the news release.
“This event highlights the volatility and tension in our communities right now. I ask for peace as we work through this difficult time.”
Chauvin is the former Minneapolis police officer on trial in the death of George Floyd in May.
The officer, charged with two counts of murder and one of manslaughter, is accused of killing Floyd by kneeling on his neck for more than eight minutes after Floyd was arrested on suspicion of counterfeiting.
Floyd’s death sparked months of riots in Minneapolis and throughout the country involving thuggery, burglary, vandalism, and the destruction of small businesses in what mainstream media called “mostly-peaceful” protests.
Protests and riots returned to Minnesota and other parts of the country following the recent police shootings of 20-year-old Wright in the Minneapolis suburb of Brooklyn Center, Minnesota, and 13-year-old Adam Toledo in Chicago.
Closing arguments in the Chauvin trial are scheduled for Monday, with jury deliberations beginning after that.
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