The four Minnesota police officers facing charges in the shooting death of Philip Prince, known as George Floyd, will go to trial together. Prince was fatally shot by the four officers in June 2016 after police attempted to pull him over for reportedly running a red light. The grand jury charged Ramsey County Deputies David Hansmeier, Jason Weiland, Brandon Douglas and Joseph Vraa with second-degree manslaughter and other offenses Tuesday, the Star Tribune reported.
Michael Orenstein, the lawyer representing Officers Hansmeier and Douglas, said his clients were relieved the long investigation into Prince’s death was over.
“It’s another step towards some semblance of justice in the eyes of the community,” Orenstein said.
Hansmeier and Douglas are now former Minnesota policemen, Douglas working for the Minneapolis police force, Hansmeier for the North Metro Protection Unit, weiland for the Duluth Police Department. Prince worked as a maintenance technician at a Blue Earth hospital.
According to the Star Tribune, Prince “was running a red light with a car full of suspicious persons in front of him,” when officers Adam Funk and John Paul Haberman pulled him over for driving too fast. Authorities later said that Prince did not “stop for the officers,” and “jumped from the vehicle and fled on foot.”
Prince ran into an alley behind 1347 Broadway Avenue in Minneapolis and allegedly fired a handgun at the officers. Funk and Haberman returned fire, and Prince died after a shootout.