Two journalists who were cornered and attacked by the Minnesota State Patrol as they covered protests over George Floyd’s murder for the Los Angeles Times will soon settle a lawsuit with the state for $1.2 million. The pair, one current and one former L.A. Times employee, alleged the troopers violated their First Amendment rights.
The settlement stems from a violent May 30, 2020, incident when staff photographer Carolyn Cole and Molly Hennessy-Fiske, then the Times’ Houston bureau chief, were in Minneapolis covering the community’s response to Floyd’s murder by former Police Officer Derek Chauvin.
Minnesota’s governor had issued an executive order for a nighttime curfew in Minneapolis and St. Paul, but the directive exempted law enforcement, emergency personnel, and news media.
On May 30, after the curfew went into effect, the two reporters were covering a protest when, they said, state troopers ordered crowds to disperse.
Even though they were wearing credentials, carrying media equipment, and identified themselves as press, the journalists said the troopers then backed them and other media personnel into a corner against a wall and began firing projectiles and pepper-spraying the group.
In a statement, Cole expressed her gratitude for the support received and for the significant outcome of the ruling reinforcing their First Amendment rights. She hopes this settlement will help protect other journalists in similar situations.
Hennessy-Fiske mentioned that this was the first time in her extensive career that she had been attacked by authorities, emphasizing the importance of upholding the press’s rights to cover protests without fear of violence.
The state of Minnesota is expected to finalize the settlement agreement this week, with the reporters splitting $200,000, while the remaining $1 million will cover attorneys’ fees. The state did not admit wrongdoing in the settlement, and the Minnesota State Patrol has yet to comment on the matter.
This resolution serves as a reminder of the significance of safeguarding press freedoms and ensuring that journalists can carry out their duties without facing unwarranted aggression. The hope is that this settlement acts as a deterrent and protects the rights of reporters and photographers covering essential stories worldwide.
