The nation’s fears as to what was going on behind closed doors at Ferguson Missouri’s police department has been confirmed by a Department of Justice investigation.
The report found that the police and courts meted out illegal and unduly harsh treatment, particularly to black people. The report concluded that:
“Mistreatment is due to discrimination, and a primary focus on maximizing city revenue through citations, not to keeping the peace. Further, Ferguson’s police and municipal court practices both reflect and exacerbate existing racial bias, including racial stereotypes. Ferguson’s own data establish clear racial disparities that adversely impact African Americans.”
The report confirmed that the police had a culture of suppression and was in violation of Constitutional rights.
Officers expect and demand compliance even when they lack legal authority. They are inclined to interpret the exercise of free-speech rights as unlawful disobedience, innocent movements as physical threats, indications of mental or physical illness as belligerence. Police supervisors and leadership do too little to ensure that officers act in accordance with law and policy, and rarely respond meaningfully to civilian complaints of officer misconduct. The result is a pattern of stops without reasonable suspicion and arrests without probable cause in violation of the Fourth Amendment; infringement on free expression, as well as retaliation for protected expression, in violation of the First Amendment; and excessive force in violation of the Fourth Amendment.”
To add insult to injury, several departmental emails utilized racial, derogatory imagery when concerning African-Americans, in particular President Obama and th First Lady Michelle Obama.
The Ferguson Mayor James Knowles, who is arguably just as culpable as his own Chief of Police Tom Jackson for his city’s racist policy; stated in a press-conference:
“Let me be clear: This type of behavior will not be tolerated in the Ferguson Police Department, or in any department in the city of Ferguson,”.
A report so damning could herald the end of the Ferguson, PD in its current form.
“I think a lot of people need to lose their jobs,” said one Ferguson resident.
Department of Justice Report on Ferguson
