Minneapolis police say 5 shot near protest scene

MINNEAPOLIS - Five people have been shot near the site of an ongoing protest over the fatal shooting of a black man by a police officer, a Minneapolis Police Department spokesman said.

Spokesman John Elder told The Associated Press in an email just before midnight Monday that five people were shot. All five have injuries that are not life-threatening, he said.

The Star Tribune reported the shootings occurred near an alley about a block away from the 4th Precinct station, where protesters have been conducting a sit-in since the shooting of 24-year-old Jamar Clark on Nov. 15.

Police department Deputy Chief Medaria Arradondo told the newspaper three gunshot victims were taken to a hospital.

No further details were immediately available.

Authorities have said Clark, 24, was shot during a struggle with police after he interfered with paramedics who were trying to assist an assault victim. But some people who said they saw the shooting allege Clark was handcuffed.

Protesters and Clark's family have been calling for investigators to release video of the shooting. The state Bureau of Criminal Apprehension said it has video from the ambulance, a mobile police camera and other sources, but none of it shows the event in its entirety. The agency, which is conducting a state investigation, said releasing the footage now would taint its investigation.

A federal criminal civil rights investigation is also under way, to determine whether police intentionally violated Clark's civil rights through excessive force.