Public hearing for Minneapolis police chief confirmation set for Wednesday afternoon

Acting Minneapolis Police Chief Medaria Arradondo will appear before the City Council's Public Safety Committee Wednesday for what is likely to be a heavily attended public confirmation hearing.

The session will kick off at 1:30 p.m. in the City Council chambers on the third floor of City Hall. Residents can voice their concerns and comments about Mayor Betsy Hodges' appointment of Arradondo, a 28-year department veteran who most recently served as assistant chief. If confirmed, he would become the first African-American chief in the city's history.

Hodges tapped him to run the department when former chief Janeé Harteau was forced to resign amid the uproar over the July 15 shooting death of Justine Damond, a 40-year-old Australian native who was shot by officer Mohamed Noor, who responded to a 911 call she made about a possible sexual assault behind her home. The shooting cast an international spotlight on the department and amplified calls for reform.

Last week, the council's Executive Committee approved a motion to allow Arradondo to serve out the rest of Harteau's term, which runs through January 2019.

Still, his confirmation isn't finalized. If approved by the committee Wednesday, his nomination is expected to go before the full council for final approval later this month.

Arradondo hasn't yet filled out his command staff, which has at least one opening — the assistant chief post vacated when he was nominated as chief — but says that he anticipates leadership changes in the near future.

During his career, Arradondo has climbed the ranks of the department, working patrol, internal affairs and as inspector of the downtown First Precinct. In 2014, he was appointed Harteau's chief of staff, which put him on the front lines of the department's community outreach efforts. He later became assistant chief, taking over the department's day-to-day operations when Harteau's former second-in-command, Kris Arneson, retired.