- Wife of fallen police officer told Governor Walz not to attend funeral
The widow of slain Minnesota police officer reveals she told Kamala Harris’ running mate Tim Walz to stay away from her husband’s funeral.
Shannon Owen received a condolence call from Walz in 2023 after her husband Joshua died in the line of duty.
Owen chose a few words for the governor and told him that he would be removed from the memorial service if he showed up.
“You have never supported the police and I would appreciate it if you would not come near my city,” he said in a partial recording of their telephone conversation included in the Alpha News Documentary Minnesota vs. We the People.
Shannon Owen, the wife of a Minnesota police officer killed in the line of duty last year, told Gov. Tim Walz not to attend her husband’s funeral because he would be escorted from the venue.
She also informed Walz, who is now the Democratic vice presidential nominee, that if he attempted to attend the funeral, she would “make sure to escort you out of here.”
“No, I totally understand and respect your rights,” Walz responded during calls just days after Owen’s husband was killed.
“Our officers are here to support you with anything you need,” he said before the call ended abruptly.
Owen said she didn’t say much during the conversations and “just let him ramble because that’s what politicians do.”
The conversation highlights a major problem for Walz – at least in his home state of Minnesota – among law enforcement.
When asked if he was suitable to be the next vice president, Owen said: “Of course not.”
“I don’t like how he is with the police situation, the military situation. I just feel like he’s a puppet right now,” she said. according to The Telegraph. “He doesn’t really talk about what he really wants to do.”
A video of Owen speaking on the phone with Governor Walz reveals that she told him: “You have never supported the police and I would appreciate it if you would stay away from my city.”
Sheriff’s Deputy Josh Owen was killed during a shooting while responding to a domestic violence call in the spring of 2023. He was planning to leave the force shortly before his death due to reforms that were making his job increasingly dangerous, his deputy says. wife.
He accused Governor Walz of pretending to be a “nice guy” after joining Vice President Kamala Harris’ 2024 bid.
Minnesota has a big problem with citizens versus police after it became ground zero for calls to abolish the police following the death of George Floyd at the hands of a police officer.
Floyd’s death in Minneapolis in 2020 sparked riots that lasted days and spawned the Black Lives Matter movement in which Walz found himself caught in the crosshairs as governor.
Civil rights activists believe he did not do enough to stop police from responding to violence in Minneapolis and St. Paul following Floyd’s death. But Republicans accused him of going too far by preventing law enforcement from doing their jobs.
Five years later, opinions on Walz’s response remain highly divisive.
Minneapolis lost 40 percent of its force in the wake of Floyd’s death and the defund police movement.
Owen says her husband, a military veteran, planned to leave the force “right before he died.”
He said he was upset about police reforms that made his job too dangerous.
Governor Walz, who is now running for vice president, called Owen to offer his condolences and when told to stay away from the funeral said, ‘No, I fully understand and respect your rights. Our officers are here to support you in any way you need.
Sheriff’s Deputy Josh Owen was responding to a domestic violence incident when he was killed in the line of duty.
Body camera footage shows the officer entering an apartment where two officers were already present.
The killer had a gun hidden under his leg.
When Deputy Sheriff Owen tried to arrest the man, “that’s when the guy pulled out his gun,” his wife recalled.
One officer was shot in the vest before Owen pulled out his own gun and began shooting.
He is seen staggering. He said, “I’ve been shot.” He started to lean over and then collapsed and died.
The suspect also died in the attack.
