Dane Co. Police Chiefs Assn. president calls Minneapolis officers "heinous and unacceptable"

The president of the Dane County Chiefs of Police Association doesn’t need to know any more about what led to the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis on Monday to call the actions of the officers involved were “heinous and unacceptable.”

“Regardless of further information that may be discovered in this case, nothing can justify the actions or inactions of these officers,” Kristen Roman wrote in a statement released Thursday morning. “If someone calls for help, it is our duty to help.”

Footage recorded by a bystander shows Minneapolis police officer Chauvin with his knee on George Floyd's neck as Floyd gasps for breath on the ground with his face against the pavement. The officer does not move for at least eight minutes, even after Floyd stops speaking and moving.

Roman, who also serves as the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s police chief, defended law enforcement officers across her county – and most of the rest across the nation – saying that they don’t reflect their values or training.

She went on to explain that when struggling with a suspect, if they say they can’t breathe, the officers are trained to reposition them. She added that the officers showed “moral and tactical shortcomings” and described the context of police officers treating unarmed persons of color “sadly, an unsurprising tragedy.”

In a blog post on the Madison Police Department

, Acting Chief Victor Wahl said his reaction to the video was "disbelief and dismay." He added that even though the confrontation happened in another state, it still affects local law enforcement.

"Many in our community, and particularly members of the African American community, are rightfully feeling pain and anger as they contemplate what took place," he said.

It is still unclear why Floyd was arrested in such a physical way for what would have been a low-level crime. Police in most large cities have backed away from certain arrests to guard against further spread of the virus. The officers in the video were not wearing masks.

A Minneapolis Fire Department report shows that paramedics moved Floyd from the scene, and two fire crew members got into the ambulance to help. Medics were doing chest compressions and other lifesaving measures on an “unresponsive, pulseless male,” the report said. Floyd was pronounced dead at a hospital.

Situations like the one in Minneapolis can undermine the public’s trust in law enforcement officers everywhere and despite the work done in Dane County to build that faith, those events on the national stage “set us back.”

“We’re proud of the work we’ve done and the improvements we’ve made here in Dane County,” she continued. “We understand that a statement such as this is not an adequate remedy and we know that we have much more work to do.”

Roman wrapped up the letter by expressing her sympathies and those of the Dane County Chiefs of Police Association and saying they mourn with the community the death of George Floyd.

“Our thoughts are with his family and everyone else who has been impacted by this horrific incident,” she concluded.

The Hennepin County Attorney’s Office, which would prosecute any state charges, issued a statement saying that Floyd's death had “outraged us and people across the country” and that the case “deserves the best we can give.”

Based on the video, Mayor Jacob Frey said officer Derek Chauvin should be charged in the death of George Floyd.

The FBI was investigating whether officers willfully deprived Floyd of his civil rights.