Riots
November 19, 2021 — Paul Mirengoff
To leftists and the prosecutors who did their bidding, Kyle Rittenhouse’s offense wasn’t any of the things he was charged with. He clearly had an unassailable defense to all of the charges against him. But that didn’t matter because Rittenhouse was guilty of something else — showing up armed at a leftist riot or, as the left called it, “vigilantism.” As the left and the prosecution see it, Rittenhouse never
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November 12, 2021 — John Hinderaker
I am not sure how liberals expected the Kyle Rittenhouse murder trial to go. Anyone who had seen the videos of Rittenhouse’s interactions with the men who were chasing him, striking him and trying to kill him knew that he had a strong case of self-defense. But apparently the fact that Rittenhouse has a defense–and is so bold as to assert it!–came as a surprise to the Left. Liberal reactions
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October 16, 2021 — John Hinderaker
Following a FOIA request and a lawsuit, Judicial Watch has obtained around 500 pages of documents from the D.C. Metropolitan Police that relate to the shooting of Ashli Babbitt during the January 6 riot. The documents are here; you can read them and make of them what you will. Judicial Watch’s commentary on the materials is here. The most significant documents are the statements taken from the other law enforcement
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June 7, 2021 — Scott Johnson
Who can take a city, burn it to the ground? Umbrella Man can, at least according to the search warrant application/affidavit filed by Minneapolis police officer Erika Christensen in the summer of 2020. Star Tribune reporter Libor Jany told me he came across Christensen’s affidavit in a routine review of court filings. Libor reported on the allegations of Christensen’s affidavit in his July 28 story “Minneapolis police say ‘Umbrella Man’
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April 19, 2021 — John Hinderaker
The murder trial of former police officer Derek Chauvin is wrapping up today with closing arguments and jury instructions. The National Guard is standing by to deal with the expected riots when the jury returns its verdict later this week, along with law enforcement from several local agencies as well as other states. Downtown Minneapolis resembles a fortress, only with fewer people. Both Scott and I have questioned whether Chauvin
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April 18, 2021 — John Hinderaker
Maxine Waters, one of the House’s most senior and looniest members, is in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota, firing up the rioters there. In this clip, she urges them to be more confrontational and to stay in the streets. She also demands a guilty verdict in the Derek Chauvin trial. Not guilty of manslaughter–“oh no no, not manslaughter!”–but murder. pic.twitter.com/O7EwvCtM3D — CrimeWatchMpls (@CrimeWatchMpls) April 18, 2021 I don’t suppose Mad Maxine has
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April 16, 2021 — John Hinderaker
The Minneapolis Public Schools are shutting down next week in anticipation of a verdict in the Derek Chauvin trial: Minneapolis Public Schools are suspending in-person learning next week as the state awaits a verdict in the murder trial against Derek Chauvin. Why? In anticipation of riots, looting and arson, presumably: “Our community is moving through an extraordinarily challenging time as we react to the killing of former MPS student Daunte
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April 14, 2021 — John Hinderaker
During the George Floyd riots in Minnesota last Summer, the first night or two of violence was carried out predominantly by locals. But then the professional rioters and career criminals arrived, in the person of Antifa. That seems to be happening again, as Fox News reports, with reporter Mike Tobin on the scene: Members of the violent far-left activist group Antifa identified themselves to a Fox News reporter who was
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April 12, 2021 — Scott Johnson
Operation Safety Net is the law enforcement initiative to protect local government infrastructure (such as the Hennepin County Government Center) following the verdict in the trial of Derek Chauvin. The Chauvin trial is taking place in the Government Center, which otherwise remains closed for security purposes. An officer-involved shooting in Minneapolis suburb Brooklyn Center yesterday afternoon put OSN to work overnight. The video below captures the OSN media briefing held
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March 7, 2021 — John Hinderaker
Scott has written about the trial of Derek Chauvin, in which jury selection is scheduled to start on Monday, and the fact that the Hennepin County Government Center has been turned into a bunker surrounded by barbed wire. This video shows what he was talking about: Meanwhile, the city has sent a letter to local businesses advising them on preparing for the trial: The City of Minneapolis is working with
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February 27, 2021 — John Hinderaker
Derek Chauvin goes on trial for murder in the death of George Floyd on March 8. His trial has been separated from that of the other three officers who have been charged; theirs will begin in August. Chauvin is the principal defendant. Of the four policemen involved, two were on something like their fourth day on the job. The third was a tiny guy, also not very experienced. Chauvin was
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February 15, 2021 — Scott Johnson
I’ve been wondering whatever happened to Umbrella Man. According to the officer who swore out the affidavit supporting the search warrant issued on the Umbrella Man suspect’s cell phone this past July, Umbrella Man was responsible for the vast harm inflicted on the Twin Cities in the aftermath of the death of George Floyd on Memorial Day. As I noted yesterday, Libor Jany’s page-one Star Tribune story of July 28
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February 14, 2021 — Scott Johnson
Who can take a city, burn it to the ground? The Umbrella Man can, at least according to the search warrant application/affidavit filed by Minneapolis police officer Erika Christensen this past summer. Star Tribune reporter Libor Jany told me he came across Christensen’s affidavit in a routine review of court filings. Libor reported on the allegations of Christensen’s affidavit in his July 28 story “Minneapolis police say ‘Umbrella Man’ was
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February 11, 2021 — Paul Mirengoff
Following the January 6 riot at the Capitol, Joe Biden had this to say about the police force that, at a great personal cost, prevented the rioters from completely overrunning the building and injuring members of Congress, as well as the U.S. Vice President: Not only did we see the failure to protect one of the three branches of our government, we also saw a clear failure to carry out
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January 25, 2021 — Scott Johnson
Victor Davis Hanson takes up the theme of this series in the American Greatness column “River of forgetfulness.” Among other things, he observes: Serious Big Brother was never coming to America kicking and screaming in a suit and in a mile-long tie, but rather eagerly welcomed in with jeans and sneakers without socks. The First Amendment could always survive a crude, inebriated Joe McCarthy, but not so easily a social
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January 23, 2021 — Scott Johnson
If you read the New York Post, you may be aware that Antifa/BLM rioters continue their assault on Portland. Andy Ngo, for example, brings the news in the New York Post column “Biden won’t stop them, and neither will cops, until Portland is burned down.” Ngo reports: In Portland, Black Lives Matter-Antifa made good on their pre-announced “J20” (January 20) riot. Around 150 Antifa dressed in black shut down traffic
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January 19, 2021 — Scott Johnson
While the Twin Cities were torched by BLM and other rioters following the death of George Floyd this past Memorial Day, Governor Tim Walz wrung his hands and bloviated in sympathy with the rioters. When things got hot he shifted the blame to others including the Minneapolis mayor (partly true) and alleged outsiders (mostly false). I posted videos of two of his press conferences here on June 1 while we
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