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Residents press Edina police on response time, suspect alerts and evidence release
Summary
At a public briefing after a park shooting, residents asked why officers on earlier patrol did not prevent the incident, why suspect details were not included in alerts, and what charges investigators seek; police said operational constraints and prosecutorial considerations limited what they could disclose.
Residents pressed police on operational questions: whether officers on earlier patrols could have prevented the shooting, why suspect descriptions were not released in initial alerts, and what charges investigators hoped to pursue.
Lisa Deebold said she was in her backyard when shots rang out and asked what could reduce response time and whether closing parks at sunset was an option. "Having resources that's having officers outside wasn't enough of a resource when the event occurred in the 1st place," she said. Chief Milburn replied that officers were in the park earlier but had to leave to answer other calls and reiterated that a package of measures is needed rather than a single fix.
When asked why suspect information was not included in early alerts, Milburn said investigators did not have reliable suspect descriptions at the time and did not want to compromise investigations: "The information we get in the 1st 10 minutes is vastly different an hour later." On potential charges, Milburn said the department would seek felony assault with a weapon if a cooperating victim and evidence supported it, while current charging included reckless discharge as one option.
