This is what the scene is like outside the Minneapolis court

Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison is calling on lawmakers to help curb police brutality.

“I’m not talking about the kind of change that takes decades. I’m talking about real change, concrete change that real people can do now,” said Ellison in the wake of Derek Chauvin’s sentencing.

“At this historic moment, there is so much legislation around the country, in city councils, county boards, state legislatures, and Congress that is still waiting to be passed. If these bills were passed, they would make the deaths at the hands of law enforcement officers less likely.”

On Friday afternoon, a judge in Minnesota sentenced Chauvin, a former police officer, to 22 and a half years in prison for the murder of George Floyd.

“Every one of these bills at every level of government is critical for helping our families, our law enforcement officers, communities, and the country heal,” said Ellison. “Above all, Congress has still not passed the George Floyd Justice [in] Policing Act. I call on leaders and members of Congress to pass the best and strongest version of this bill.”

Citing a continued “distrust between community and police,” Ellison noted that such a fissure leads to an increase in violence and death.

“And at a moment where violent crime is spiking across the nation in major cities, we simply cannot afford the distrust,” said Ellison. “The schism leaves us all a little less safe.”