Minneapolis Cops Who Shot, Killed Black Man Are Identified

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) _ State investigators have released the names of two Minneapolis officers who shot and killed a black man who authorities say had a gun.

Thurman Blevins Jr. was fatally shot Saturday by Officer Ryan Kelly and Officer Justin Schmidt after a foot chase through a north Minneapolis alley.

The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension says Kelly has been with the Minneapolis police department since 2013 and Schmidt joined the department in 2014.

Authorities say Kelly and Schmidt were responding to reports of a man firing a gun outside. They arrived to find Blevins sitting on a curb. The head of the police union has said Blevins refused orders to drop the gun and pulled it out before he was shot.

Some community members have said Blevins was not armed.

Body camera footage of the shooting hasn't been released.