Minneapolis officials voice concerns after video shows man shooting gun from car

Minneapolis officials are voicing concerns after a video was posted online showing a man shooting a gun while doing doughnuts in his vehicle in the Uptown neighborhood of the city.

Authorities are investigating a clip from Wednesday night of a person shooting and doing car doughnuts close to where Winston Smith was killed by a member of a U.S. Marshals Task Force, Fox 9 reported.

The city has seen crime and street racing go up since the killing of Smith. 

“We have had homicides occur because of reckless discharge of firearms at these particular types of events,” Minneapolis Police Department (MPD) spokesperson John Elder said. “It is an extremely dangerous situation and a severe threat to public safety.”

Protesters at the Wince Marie Peace Garden said the car doughnuts and shooting were in support of the protests and that they don’t condemn any form of protest, including gunfire or street racing, according to the outlet. 

“The drag racing incident in Uptown is an unfortunate example of this problem which has increased in the Twin Cities. MPD is responding to these incidents and has been setting up road barriers on weekends as a deterrent,” Councilmember Lisa Bender said.

Along with Winston, a female protester was killed after a man drove through a protest while drunk. 

Mayor Jacob Frey said the police department needs to have more officers to deal with the rise in crime as more than 100 arrests have been made in Uptown since the protests began. 

The Hill has reached out to the police department for comment. 

Minneapolis has been a center of the national debate over racial justice and police reform since last year, when George Floyd was killed by former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin. A jury in the city found Chauvin guilty of murdering Floyd and he was sentenced last month.