Minneapolis Police investigate hiring of officer charged, then cleared, in assault on unarmed Black man
MINNEAPOLIS – The Minneapolis Police Department is investigating its own hiring of an officer charged, but later cleared, of assaulting an unarmed Black man.
The Minnesota Reformer first uncovered the story. Just days after George Floyd was killed in Minneapolis, Fairfax County police officer Tyler Timberlake was one of the first on scene when La Monta Gladney was walking in the street, rambling incoherently in June of 2020.
Body camera video shows Timberlake hit Gladney with the stun gun before using it on him again. He then kneeled on Gladney's neck and back.
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"Mr. Gladney was not violating any laws, he was not a risk to anyone, he was not a safety risk to himself," said Tom Hennessey, Gladney's attorney.
Hennessey says the video shows the other officer on the scene almost had Gladney in the ambulance when Timberlake arrived.
Timberlake was arrested and charged with three counts of misdemeanor assault and battery and relieved of duty. At the time of the arrest, it's been reported that Timberlake was already in the process of moving to Minneapolis.
"One of my principal goals...in taking this case, besides getting financial relief for Mr. Gladney to compensate for his injuries, was to make sure that this officer did not work in law enforcement either in Fairfax County, Virginia, or anywhere else," Hennessey said.
Two years after the incident, Timberlake was acquitted of the assault charges. He is now in training to be a Minneapolis police officer.
"One would think that of all the jurisdictions in the country, Minneapolis would be especially vigilant about the officers that they hire and checking their backgrounds," Hennessey said.
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Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O'Hara released a statement Wednesday, saying in part, "I am extremely concerned about what I have just learned pertaining to the hiring of this individual who is currently in agency training and yet to be deployed into service," O'Hara said. "Effective immediately, I am directing that a thorough investigation be conducted into this matter."
Timberlake is still in training, and Chief O'Hara says he will not hit the streets of Minneapolis until an investigation into his hiring is complete.
"We will get to the bottom of this and take whatever measures are necessary to ensure we are always hiring officers who meet our standards, and that we are ultimately placing only the most qualified and competent police into the service and protection in the City of Minneapolis," O'Hara said.
