Frazier family says lawsuit is coming

Updated 6:30 p.m.

The attorney for the family of Leneal Frazier says they plan to sue the city of Minneapolis after Frazier was killed when his SUV was struck by a police car pursuing another vehicle.

“Will there be a lawsuit?” said attorney Jeff Storms, who represents the family. “You betcha.”

Storms is a local attorney who worked with lawyer Ben Crump whose suit against the city over the death of George Floyd resulted in a historic $27 million settlement. He said they are still in the investigation phase and are trying to get body camera and squad video footage of the incident.

Storms said this is a racial issue, pointing to a USA Today examination of people killed during police pursuits in 2015 that found that Black people, both innocent bystanders and those fleeing police, were killed in police chases at a rate of three times higher than everyone else.

“When Minneapolis has to sit down and say, ‘What kind of precedent are we going to set for showing accountability to the Black community, when we recklessly drive at high rates of speed in residential neighborhoods?’ Are we going to be held accountable as a city?’ And they must, because these things will keep happening,” Storms said.

Frazier’s SUV was hit by a squad car at Lyndale Avenue North and 41st Avenue North around 12:30 a.m. Tuesday. Police say the officer driving the squad car, identified as Brian Cummings, was pursuing a vehicle that had been involved in a carjacking and multiple robberies. In a video of the incident, the fleeing vehicle can be seen driving at a high rate of speed, followed closely by a squad with its emergency lights on, which strikes Frazier’s vehicle.

Orlando Frazier is Leneal’s brother. 

“My family is hurting... And it's not right,” he said. “My brother was the man of the house. He made sure his little brother, his mom, his sister, his kids, his grandpa, his grandkids, his nieces and nephews — he made sure everybody was taken care of, everybody was good”

Frazier’s daughter Jamie Bradford said the family wants justice. But not just because a police officer was driving the car which collided with her father.

“The first car would have hit him first if my dad was going any faster,” said Bradford. “And we still would have been out here wanting the same justice.”

Frazier is the uncle of Darnella Frazier, the teenager who recorded video of George Floyd’s murder by then Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin in 2020.

Officer Cummings was hired by the MPD in 2008 and has been the subject of 13 complaint investigations. None of the cases resulted in discipline, so the nature of the complaints is not public. Cummings public personnel file shows that he received the department’s Lifesaving Award in 2015 and a Medal of Commendation in 2016.

Storms also asked that the state step in to investigate and possibly pursue criminal charges against the officer who was driving the squad.

“When a citizen drives recklessly and kills somebody else, they face criminal charges. And that's exactly what needs to be investigated and pursued to the fullest extent of the law here,” Storms said.

Nekima Levy-Armstrong, a civil rights activist and attorney, called on the State Attorney General’s office to take on the case.

In an emailed statement, Minneapolis City Attorney Jim Rowander said, "We extend our deepest sympathies to the Frazier family and loved ones of Mr. Frazier in what can only be called a tragic incident. At this time we do not know all of the facts surrounding the crash, understanding that it is under investigation. As always, the city attorney’s office is available to discuss pending claims and lawsuits with the family’s counsel to determine if any resolutions can be reached."

Earlier this week, Mayor Jacob Frey called Frazier’s death “a horrific tragedy” and called for a review of the police department’s policies on vehicle pursuits.