Family wants answers in fatal crash with officer

By Esme Murphy

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    MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) — A medical examiner’s report says 40-year-old Leneal Frazier died of multiple blunt force injuries.

He was killed after his car collided with a Minneapolis police squad car that was chasing a carjacking suspect. Video from early Tuesday morning shows the severity of the impact.

READ MORE: Fargo Woman Charged With Driving 137 MPH On Interstate While the suspect being chased escaped, the driver of another car received minor injuries.

Anger over Frazier’s death has only increased.

“This ain’t the freeway. Y’all ain’t cowboys, man. Y’all are supposed to protect and serve us,” Terry, who asked to only be identified by his first name, said.

Terry is a cousin of Frazier.

“I understand you guys got a job to do, man, but this, bro. These people live right here, man,” he said.

Passions have only escalated since word has spread that Frazier is the uncle of Darnella Frazier, the teen who recorded George Floyd’s murder.

A debate on the death and the police pursuit is raging on her Facebook and on other online sites. In one of her latest posts she writes, “I also never said the suspect held zero responsibility, but the police made a bad decision by doing a high speed chase on a residential road. That bad decision cost my uncle his life.”

Leneal Frazier is the father of Patricia Johnson’s 8-month-old son, Da’vion Frazier.

“I was shocked, when I really found out I was shocked,” Johnson said. “I am not taking it very well but I am trying to be strong for me and my son.”

Family also gathered at the scene Tuesday night. Leneal Frazier’s sister and his brothers want to know why.

“We demanding answers, we all want answers, man, because he wasn’t ready to leave,” Orlando Frazier said.

The Minneapolis police pursuit policy says a chase must be discontinued if it poses an unreasonable risk to the public.

The police officer, who was identified as Brian Cummings, was treated at a local hospital and released. He is on paid administrative leave, which is standard procedure. A K-9 with him in the car was not hurt.

Documents released Wednesday say there are three different videos of the crash, from the squad, police body camera and surveillance video. Police are not releasing any body camera video.

Alcohol or drugs were not a factor in the crash.

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