MINNEAPOLIS (AP) - A spokeswoman for Minneapolis Mayor Betsy Hodges says a photo gaining attention on social media shows the mayor and a community activist pointing at each other, not flashing a gang sign.
Spokeswoman Kate Brickman responded Friday after a KSTP-TV report aired Thursday night quoting a former Minneapolis police officer saying the Nov. 1 photo shows the mayor and a community activist flashing a known gang sign.
The report was swiftly criticized on social media, with some tweets ridiculing it and showing photos of other high-profile people using similar hand gestures.
KSTP News Director Lindsay Radford said Friday that law-enforcement sources alerted the station to the photo, saying it could jeopardize officers' safety, and several sources from multiple law enforcement agencies said the same.
A police spokesman declined comment Friday.