2 injured during unrest suing city

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Two men injured by police during violence that followed the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis are suing the city, its police chief and unnamed officers.

Soren Stevenson, 25, lost his left eye after he was shot by police with a projectile in the days following Floyd’s death May 25. Ethan Marks, 19, suffered blinding injuries to his right eye when a tear gas canister exploded in his face. Marks says he was helping his mother clean up rubble along a Minneapolis street May 28 when he was struck without warning on an interstate ramp.

An attorney for both men, Robert Bennett, says actions by police violated their constitutional rights. Bennett is seeking $10 million in damages plus attorneys fees for each of them, the Star Tribune reported.

The men’s lawsuit cites police policy that says firing projectiles to certain parts of the body can cause serious injury or death and forbids discharging them for crowd management.

Fight follows murder sentence

ST. PAUL (AP) — A family fight following a sentencing for murder at the Ramsey County Courthouse caused deputies to lock down the building before gunshots were fired outside nearby in a shooting believed to be related to the argument.

No one was injured in the shooting several blocks from the courthouse Monday.

Undersheriff Tina McNamara says emotions can run high at trials and if those feelings are acted on, it can be dangerous for all involved.

According to McNamara, the defendant’s family had a fight in the lobby of the courthouse and when it began to get physical deputies escorted those involved outside. Soon after deputies heard gunshots fired. Shell casings were found in the area.

Eastern Iowa officers shoot man

WYOMING, Iowa (AP) — Eastern Iowa officers shot and injured a man they say was brandishing a gun, state investigators said Tuesday.

The shooting happened Monday night in rural Wyoming, Iowa, the Iowa Division of Public Safety said in a news release. Someone called 911 around 7:30 p.m. to lodge a firearms complaint, and arriving officers from various agencies found James Orval Bartram, 51, of Wyoming, brandishing a gun, the agency said.

An Iowa state trooper and a Delaware County sheriff’s deputy both fired their weapons, hitting Bartam in the upper torso, according to the release.

The Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation is investigating.