Sep 12, 2008 6:08 am US/Central
Rybak Unveils Details Of Post-RNC Review
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) ―
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Mayor R.T. Rybak acknowledged that that the group detained included journalists, and he says officials need to look at such incidents "to make sure that journalists can do their jobs." (File)
CBS
A review of Minneapolis law enforcement action during the Republican National Convention will include a look at how arrests were handled following a Rage Against the Machine concert at the Target Center.
Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak on Thursday released details for the post-convention review, saying it would involve the city's police and civil rights departments along with the city attorney's office.
The evaluation will include a look at training, security tactics, the appropriateness of arrests, financial impact on the courts and how well law enforcement worked with media.
The review by the police department will focus on the more than 100 arrests that occurred after the concert Sept. 3. Some have accused police of making arrests indiscriminately and detaining journalists along with the crowd.
Rybak said officials need to take a closer look at what happened, but he said he thinks it's become more difficult to determine who is a journalist.
"There are many people who blog, or video blog, or who are involved in all sorts of areas who aren't as easy to identify," Rybak said. "There are also just simply incidents we always have to look out for, to make sure that journalists can do their jobs."
Rybak has praised police efforts during several large events in Minneapolis that coincided with the week of the convention. He also said the city worked hard to defend people's First Amendment rights to free speech and peaceable assembly.
"Overall, thousands of people demonstrated peacefully in the streets of Minneapolis and St. Paul during the Republican National Convention," he said.
Besides providing information for the city's report, the Minneapolis Police Department will cooperate with St. Paul's independent review, which is being led by two former federal prosecutors.
Rybak said the city attorney's office should review the process for handling arrests and citations, saying he doesn't think the city anticipated criminal justice costs enough.
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The Republican National Convention was held at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul from Sept. 1 through Sept. 4, 2008.
(© 2009 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
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