MINNEAPOLIS — A Twin Cities man has filed a lawsuit against the city of Minneapolis and its police department, alleging an MPD officer shot him in the head with a non-lethal projectile during a peaceful protest following George Floyd’s murder. 

Court documents lay out the allegations by Mason Hermann, who claims he suffered life-changing injuries during the protest outside the MPD’s 3rd precinct on May 27, 2020. 

The lawsuit – filed Sept. 29 in U.S. District Court in Minneapolis – says Hermann was part of a group calmly protesting the deaths of Floyd and other Black citizens on that day when an MPD officer perched on the roof of the precinct purposely targeted him without warning, firing a non-lethal 40mm projectile directly into the left side of his head. 

Hermann said he was not in a restricted area, had not displayed aggression, was unarmed, and was given no commands by police before the shot was fired. The lawsuit said as he traveled home from the protest that evening he noticed “a progressive decline in his neurological functioning.” 

He was eventually transported to a hospital in River Falls, Wis., and then transferred to Regions Hospital in St. Paul where Hermann was diagnosed with a traumatic brain injury. 

The lawsuit claims that since that day, Hermann has experienced a decline in his mental health, struggling with short-term memory loss, headaches and fatigue. The plaintiff says his injuries have impacted his daily functioning and interpersonal relationships. 

To support their case, Hermann’s legal team documents multiple lawsuits Minneapolis has settled with others who alleged police misconduct and violation of their First Amendment rights, also noting that a probe by the Department of Justice found that MPD has engaged in a persistent pattern of conduct that deprives residents of their constitutional rights. 

Mason Hermann is seeking a jury trial and asking for financial compensation to be determined by jurors that includes special and compensatory damages, attorneys fees and injunctive relief forcing the city of Minneapolis and MPD to stop engaging in unconstitutional or otherwise unlawful policies, practices and customs.

PLAINFIELD, Ind. — A report by Avon police says a Plainfield officer chasing a suspect was going 100 mph seconds before a crash that killed a couple from Clayton, Indiana, in August 2024. 

According to the report, the officer slammed on the brakes 2.5 seconds before impact but still hit the driver’s side of the car going almost 60 miles an hour. 

Barbara Williams, 78, and Bennie Joe Williams, 79, were killed in the crash at the intersection of U.S. 40 and Smith Road in Plainfield around 5:45 p.m. Aug. 30. According to the couple’s obituary, the Williamses leave behind four children, 17 grandchildren, 16 great-grandchildren and one great-great-grandchild.

The incident started on a report of a person down at a Long John Silver’s restaurant. Police said the suspect, later identified as 38-year-old Bryan Goodmon, of Fillmore, Indiana, was possibly impaired as he was sitting in a car at the restaurant.

When a Plainfield officer approached Goodmon, he drove away and nearly hit the officer with his car. The officer pursued the vehicle onto U.S. 40, resulting in a brief chase that ended in the crash with the uninvolved vehicle.

According to the police report, “emergency vehicles will outrun their sirens at approximately 55 mph, so it is likely that (the Williamses) did not hear (the officer’s) sirens.” 

The report also says that as the Plainfield officer approached the intersection, the traffic light was red for him and the Williamses had a green arrow for their turn. Some intersections are equipped to change when they detect police sirens. That intersection did not have that equipment. 

“Emergency vehicles must still drive with due regard even with lights and sirens activated,” the report says. “(The officer) was traveling at a high rate of speed and did not proceed with due regard through the intersection.” 

The Avon officer investigating says that the Williamses likely didn’t see the Plainfield cruiser until they were already in the intersection. 

On Sept. 4, Goodmon was charged with resisting law enforcement causing death. He was taken into custody 17 days after the crash. 

He is being held in the Hendricks County Jail. His trial is scheduled for Nov. 26. 

KATY, Texas — A Katy family found the bottom floor of their home flooded in August because of a defect in a household appliance. And they tell us they’re not the only ones dealing with this issue.

“I came home and was like ‘Has it been raining?’” said Katy homeowner Artemiz Freeman.

When Freeman opened the door, she found out the water wasn’t from a hurricane or any storm. It was actually pouring out from something you also might have in your home.

“I noticed the tank to our toilet had cracked,” Freeman said.

Freeman said she had no idea this could happen. She came forward because she wants to warn other homeowners.

Freeman told us a local plumber, William Edmondson with True North Plumbing, told her he’s visited several homes facing these cracks.

“The water just dumps out of the tank and the toilet tries to continue to refill the tank and if you don’t notice, it will flood your home,” Edmondson said.

The toilet is one of two Vortens models which were part of a 2019 class action settlement because of the ‘random cracking.’ The numbers of the models are #3412 and #3464.

Freeman said the deadline to apply for a piece of the settlement was about four years ago, which is long before her home flooded.

She now faces thousands of dollars in damages and repairs.

“They said we can help you if you go through our insurance and I was like, this is a week or two into it. I’m already getting my house fixed. I can’t just sit here and wait,” Freeman said.

We did reach out to Vortens, who said they couldn’t meet our deadline Thursday evening. If they do get back to us with a response, we’ll post it here.