Families of people killed by police sue Bureau of Criminal Apprehension

Five families who are still waiting for information about loved ones killed by police are suing to get that information from the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension.

They claim the BCA broke Minnesota's data practices law by not providing them information from completed use-of-force investigations within 10 days of their requests.

Some families said they have waited months for the BCA to respond to their requests. One — Dolal Idd's family — has waited for nearly three years — the maximum time allowed to pass before Minnesota's statute of limitations prevents people from filing wrongful death lawsuits.

"We understand that families who have experienced these tragic losses would want all of the information that they can have as soon as possible," said Department of Public Safety spokesperson Jill Oliveira, adding that the BCA is committed to giving the info quickly and legally.

"Once a case is closed, the BCA must review every report, image, audio and video in the casefile to ensure that information that isn't public is removed as required under Minnesota law. This requires review of dash camera, body-worn camera, and surveillance video; all other images and audio of the incident; and voluminous reports."

Families of Idd, Zachary Shogren, Okwan Sims, Tekle Sundberg and Brent Alsleben gathered in the Ramsey County Courthouse on Thursday to announce the lawsuit. Many wore shirts and carried photos of the dead, fighting back tears while describing the deep impact the deaths made in their lives.

Idd's father, Bayle Gelle, said Minneapolis police raided his home the night he learned about his son's death. Gelle recalled collapsing in tears from the news.

"I was scared. ... They terrorized us," Gelle said, claiming that officers told him to sit down and shut up. One officer allegedly pointed a gun at his 4-year-old son. "If there is any justice in Minnesota, we need to get [it]."

The families are represented by the litigation unit of Communities United Against Police Brutality, a volunteer organization launched nearly two decades ago to address police brutality in Minnesota. The group's president, Michelle Gross, said the lawsuit may be the first of its kind against the BCA. If so, it could affect data requests from families of other people killed by officers across the state.

"The Bureau of Criminal Apprehension just keeps saying, 'We don't have time to give [the data] to you. We're too busy.' Or in some cases [it] doesn't even answer the request at all. ... They shouldn't be able to hide behind that. That harms everybody," Gross said. "Anybody whose family member was killed in an encounter with law enforcement would want to know what happened, and I think that's a right they have."

Gross said her organization has asked state legislators several times to extend the statute of limitations to six years or erase it entirely, but have been unsuccessful.

State law says that most government data is public. Data for investigations against people are confidential as long as a case is active, and a case becomes inactive when an agency or prosecutor decides not to pursue the case further. Private or confidential data can be provided to the person involved in the data or to a representative, such as surviving spouses, children or parents, if the person is dead. However there are caveats around releasing sensitive information, a topic which could be analyzed and interpreted in court.

According to a Star Tribune database, at least 230 Minnesotans have been killed in law enforcement encounters since 2000. Families involved in the lawsuit lost their loved ones as the pandemic surged and receded.

A Minneapolis police warrant claims officers tried to arrest Idd after attempting a gun sting on Dec. 30, 2020. A gunfight ensued and Idd reportedly shot at police before they returned fire, killing him. Family members questioned the incident and hundreds marched through south Minneapolis to protest Idd's death.

The Dakota County Attorney's Office chose to not charge the three officers involved, ruling that their shooting was legally justified.

Sundberg was killed on July 14, 2022, after reports of shots fired from Sundberg's apartment launched an overnight standoff. Family members say he was having a mental health emergency, and requested more body camera footage from officers involved in the shooting. The Hennepin County Attorney's Office said Sundberg's death was a tragedy, but announced it would not press charges against officers involved in his shooting.

Law enforcement killed Alsleben, a man with a history of mental health struggles, after a welfare check escalated into an hourslong standoff on Dec. 15, 2022. Alsleben reportedly swung a knife and cut an officer before they fatally shot him. The Sibley County Attorney's Office ruled that officers' use of force was justified.

Duluth police shot and killed Shogren in February after trying to arrest him on suspicion of felony threats of violence. Body camera footage suggests Shogren ran at officers with a knife raised before they fired, killing him in an alley. The St. Louis County Attorney's Office announced in August that the officer who fired the fatal shot would face no criminal charges.

Sims was fatally shot by Stillwater police in March after reports of gunfire and of Sims shooting a woman who entered his apartment. Authorities say Sims struck at least two squad cars when he fired at responding officers. They returned fire, striking and killing Sims outside of his apartment building. The Washington County Attorney's Office said no charges would be pressed against officers who shot Sims.

If the lawsuit is successful, the BCA could foot the bill for family members' attorney fees, reported losses and "exemplary damages" for breaking Minnesota's data practices law.

Family at the Thursday news conference said they hope the action brings closure. For Tara Sykes, mother of Alsleben, closure could mean getting back her late son's personal possessions and class ring — which she said are still with the BCA.

"That is something that I would like. I know that my son had [a] class ring, he had a watch, he had bracelets, he had things that are very personal to us," Sykes said. "I still haven't received those."