Lawsuit alleges Minneapolis police shot peaceful protester in face with projectile during Floyd protest last summer

Ana Maria Gelhaye suffered a permanent eye injury, according to the suit filed in federal court.

July 12, 2021 at 5:03PM
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Police gathered en masse on May 27, 2020, as protests continued at the Minneapolis 3rd Police Precinct in Minneapolis. (Carlos Gonzalez, Star Tribune/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

A St. Paul woman says she was protesting peacefully outside Minneapolis' Third Precinct station last summer when police shot her in the face with a projectile, causing permanent injury to her eye.

Two days after Minneapolis officer Derek Chauvin murdered George Floyd, Ana Maria Gelhaye joined the crowds that had amassed outside the south Minneapolis station to protest police brutality. While Gelhaye livestreamed the protest on Facebook, an unknown police officer fired a 40-mm "less-lethal" round at her face, according to a lawsuit she has filed in federal court.

The suit, which includes images captured on the livestream of Gelhaye's bloody eye right after she was shot, alleges that police violated her constitutional rights, including First Amendment protections.

"Making matters worse, no MPD officer rendered aid to Gelhaye after she was shot," according to the suit. "Instead, several bystanders (who happened to be nurses/medical workers) provided immediate first aid on the street and then at Moon Palace Books, a store in the area, before rushing Gelhaye to Abbott Northwestern Emergency Department."

The suit includes analysis from medical professionals who say Gelhaye suffered iris and retinal trauma and other permanent damage that incurred expensive medical bills. She also experienced psychological damage, according to the suit.

The suit names as defendants Police Chief Medaria Arradondo, the city of Minneapolis and several unidentified officers. The Minneapolis city attorney declined to comment on the suit, which was filed last week.

Gelhaye's allegations are the latest since last summer that Minneapolis police recklessly fired projectiles during the protests and riots that followed Floyd's murder May 25, 2020, wounding people who were behaving peacefully and in some cases causing serious injuries.

A group of researchers, primarily from the University of Minnesota Medical School, published a review of records from 89 people who sought medical attention during the unrest. The group found injuries from projectiles, particularly to the head and eye, to be the most common.

Their report, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, concluded that "under current practices, projectiles are not appropriate for crowd control."

Journalists also are suing the city, claiming police in one case targeted them intentionally with force during the unrest.

A U.S. Justice Department investigation into whether the Minneapolis Police Department has engaged in a pattern of illegal behavior includes allegations of officers violating First Amendment rights during protests.

Andy Mannix • 612-673-4036

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(aaron.lavinsky • aaron.lavinsky@startribune.com/The Minnesota Star Tribune)
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(Carlos Gonzalez, Star Tribune/The Minnesota Star Tribune)
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FILE - In this May 27, 2020, file photo, police gather en masse as protests continue at the Minneapolis 3rd Police Precinct in Minneapolis. More than 150 Minneapolis police officers have started the process of filing for disability claims since the death of George Floyd and the ensuing unrest in the city, with the majority citing post-traumatic stress disorder as the reason for their planned departure, according to an attorney representing the officers. (Carlos Gonzalez/Star Tribune via AP, File) (Carlos Gonzalez, Star Tribune/The Minnesota Star Tribune)
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Protesters gathered outside the Third Precinct police station on May 27, 2020, two days after the murder of George Floyd. (aaron.lavinsky • aaron.lavinsky@startribune.com/The Minnesota Star Tribune)
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Protesters at the Minneapolis 3rd Police Precinct in Minneapolis on Wednesday, May 27, 2020, amid demonstrations against the death of George Floyd in a confrontation with Minneapolis police on Monday evening. (Carlos Gonzalez/Minneapolis Star Tribune/TNS) ORG XMIT: 1672969 (Carlos Gonzalez, Star Tribune/The Minnesota Star Tribune)
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The lawsuit says Ana Maria Gelhaye was seriously injured by a police projectile. (The Minnesota Star Tribune)
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A photo from the lawsuit showing Gelhaye (lower right) after the shooting on May 27, 2020. (The Minnesota Star Tribune)
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about the writer

Andy Mannix

Minneapolis crime and policing reporter

Andy Mannix covers Minneapolis crime and policing for the Star Tribune. 

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