Body cam footage shows Minneapolis police celebrating hitting protesters with rubber bullets

New body camera footage shows Minneapolis police appearing to celebrate what one officer called the “hunting” of racial justice protestors with rubber bullets just days after George Floyd’s murder.

A protestor is heard yelling in one video, “We’re unarmed! This is America. We can say what we want,” ABC News reported. An officer then appears to shoot the protestor with rubber bullets. 

In another clip, an officer is heard saying “gotcha!” and laughing after shooting a protestor with a rubber bullet.

The footage was released Tuesday by a Minneapolis court as part of a criminal case against Jaleel Stallings, who was accused of trying to kill police officers, according to KSTP. Stallings was acquitted of the charges earlier this summer.

The body camera video captures officers trying to enforce an 8 p.m. curfew, which was put in place in response to the protests following Floyd’s death under the knee of Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin.

Police officers are seen shooting rubber bullets at a number of protestors in an attempt to clear the area.

At one point, an officer says, “You guys are out hunting people now. It’s just a nice change of tempo.” Another officer is heard saying, “F— these people.”

A spokesman for the Minneapolis Police Department told KSTP that they are unable to comment on the footage due to an ongoing internal investigation.  

Floyd’s murder sparked mass protests across the country calling for racial justice and police reform. In Minneapolis, it sparked a fierce and ongoing debate over whether to replace the city’s police department altogether. 

Other police departments in cities that experienced major protests last summer have received criticism for the way their officers handled the demonstrations.

A report in March found that the Los Angeles Police Department did not adequately plan for or respond to the protests, and a watchdog in July found that the Chicago Police Department was also significantly “unprepared” to respond to the demonstrations.