According to several witnesses, Clark was on the ground and restrained when the fatal shot was fired, hitting him in the face. The killing of Clark, a 24-year old African American man, sparked intense protests, including an 18-day occupation outside the Fourth Precinct police station, just two blocks from the site of the shooting. Countless rallies and marches have called for prosecution of the police, and no grand jury.

Just two weeks ago, Freeman caved to some of that pressure, announcing he would not send the case to a grand jury. The grand jury process takes place in secret, and never results in an indictment of police officers. Jamar Clark’s family has called for his killers to be tried in open court, so they and the community can know the truth behind his tragic death.

“We hope Wednesday’s announcement will bring us another win, with charges against Ringgenberg and Schwarze. Even that will only be one more step toward justice for Jamar Clark. We are fighting not only for indictment, but we want to see a prosecution that can take those killer cops off the streets and put them behind bars. No matter what Freeman announces this week, we’ll keep hitting the streets until we see justice,” said Jess Sundin of Freedom Road Socialist Organization.

On the day of Freeman’s announcement, the Twin Cities Coalition for Justice 4 Jamar Clark will hold an emergency rally at 5:00 p.m. at James and Plymouth Avenues North, in Minneapolis. A memorial has been maintained there, the place Clark was killed. Organizers will rally with the North Minneapolis community to demand prosecution of the police. Black Lives Matter Minneapolis and the Black Liberation Project also have plans that day for a post-announcement gathering at Elliot Park in downtown Minneapolis.

#MinneapolisMN #PoliceBrutality #HennepinCountyAttorneyMichaelFreeman #JamarClark #Justice4Jamar

During the meeting, Freeman cited his office's three-hour staff training in 2010 and a lesbian employee to demonstrate his awareness of the issues facing LGBTQ people. Supporters cited a petition with over 14,500 signatures and letters from over 35 local and national organizations, including the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, the National Coalition of Anti-violence Programs, and Outfront Minnesota, to demonstrate the international concern over his ongoing prosecution of McDonald.

Freeman's letter made special note of his office's longstanding relationship with LGBT organization Outfront Minnesota. Cheré Suzette Bergeron, who attended today's meeting as Outfront Minnesota's Anti-Violence Program Coordinator, told Freeman, “It is deeply troubling that you have not responded to our letter asking why charges are being pressed in this case when they have been dropped in similar cases,” and reiterated Outfront Minnesota's concern over Freeman's treatment of McDonald.

Freeman was adamant that gender, race, sexual orientation and class do not play into his prosecution decisions. Supporters repeatedly stated that these factors have been at play in every moment of CeCe's case, from the initial attack she experienced through her arrest and current incarceration. Lex Horan, a Support Committee member stated, “Freeman described the incident as a neutral conflict between two groups of people in the street. He refuses to acknowledge that CeCe was attacked because of her race and gender. Claiming colorblindness in this case doesn't make Freeman objective; it makes him ignorant of the reality facing transgender women of color.”

In a letter to Freeman, the National Coalition of Anti-violence Programs noted that they have responded to three murders of transgender women in April alone. McDonald supporter Billy Navarro Jr. made note of this statistic and said, “So many transgender women of color are attacked and violently killed. In this case, CeCe is basically being prosecuted for surviving.”

Rai’vyn Cross, McDonald's sister, closed the 30-minute meeting by saying, “We're not going to get justice.” Indeed, Freeman himself had acknowledged earlier in the meeting, “The criminal justice system is not built for, nor is it good at, solving a lot of society's problems.” Support Committee members agreed with this assessment of the criminal legal system, but contended that prosecuting McDonald condones violence against transgender women of color and makes problems plaguing society, including racism, sexism and transphobia, worse.

McDonald was scheduled to have a pretrial evidentiary hearing April 24, at 9 a.m. About 40 of McDonald's supporters arrived to demonstrate their support in the courtroom. However, the hearing was continued. McDonald's trial is scheduled to begin Monday, April 30.

#MinneapolisMN #RacismInTheCriminalJusticeSystem #CeCeMcDonald #transgender #HennepinCountyAttorneyMichaelFreeman