MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The Justice Department moved Wednesday to cancel settlements with Minneapolis and Louisville that called for an overhaul of their police departments following the killings of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor that became the catalyst for nationwide racial injustice protests in the summer of 2020.
The Trump administration also announced it was retracting the findings of Justice Department investigations into six other police departments that the Biden administration had accused of civil rights violations.
The Justice Department announced its decision just before the five-year anniversary of the murder of George Floyd.
The Justice Department in the final weeks of the previous administration reached consent decree agreements with Minneapolis and Louisville but the settlements had yet to be approved by a judge.
The Justice Department would have to convince a judge to back away from those already-finalized settlements — a move that some communities may oppose.
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The Justice Department on Wednesday moved to revoke agreements with Minneapolis and Louisville that demanded police department reforms in the wake of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor’s murders, which served as the impetus for racial injustice demonstrations across the country in the summer of 2020.
The Justice Department’s investigations into six other police departments that the Biden administration had accused of violating civil rights were also retracted, the Trump administration announced.
The actions mark a significant reversal for a department that, under Democratic President Joe Biden, had vigorously advocated for federal supervision of local police departments it claimed were engaging in widespread misconduct. In order to address alleged issues that it believes are better handled locally, the Trump administration accused former Justice Department leadership of pursuing expensive and onerous court-enforced settlements known as consent decrees and applying faulty legal theories to evaluate police departments.
Under the Trump administration, Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon, the new head of the Department of Justice Civil Rights Division, told reporters, “We believe that federal micromanagement of local police should be an uncommon exception, not the norm.”.
Shortly before the fifth anniversary of George Floyd’s murder, the Justice Department made its announcement. In a case that prompted protests worldwide and a national reckoning with racism and police brutality, then-officer Derek Chauvin used his knee to pin the Black man to the pavement for nine and a half minutes on May 25, 2020.
Issues like racial discrimination and excessive force were discovered during the Biden administration’s pattern-or-practice investigations into police departments nationwide. In the final weeks of the previous administration, the Justice Department reached consent decree agreements with Louisville and Minneapolis; however, a judge had not yet approved the settlements.
Critics of the decision to withdraw from the agreements said that communities would be at risk due to a lack of federal oversight.
This action is more than just a change in policy. “It’s a moral retreat that sends a chilling message that accountability is optional when it comes to Black and Brown victims,” the Rev. Al said. The Floyd and Taylor families collaborated with Sharpton to demand police accountability. “Trump’s choice to dismiss these lawsuits with prejudice establishes a risky political precedent that police departments are immune from criticism, even when they have blatantly failed to protect the communities they are sworn to protect.”. “.”.
Under the Biden administration, Kristen Clarke oversaw the Civil Rights Division. She defended the results of her office’s police investigations, stating that they were “led by career attorneys, based on data, body camera footage, and information provided by officers themselves.”. “”.
In a statement to The Associated Press, Clarke said, “To completely ignore and disregard these systemic violations, exposed in thorough and well-documented public reports, demonstrates patent disregard for our federal civil rights and the Constitution.”.
Over a dozen police consent decrees that are still in effect throughout the United States are also being reviewed, according to the Trump administration. S. Some communities may object to the Justice Department’s attempt to persuade a judge to rescind those settlements that have already been reached.
Dhillon, the head of the Civil Rights Division, pointed out that without assistance from the federal government, Louisville and Minneapolis are already acting locally to implement reforms and enforce oversight. She mentioned the high expense communities bear to comply with federal oversight, which can last for over ten years, as well as what she called issues and misuses in the consent decree monitoring system.
There isn’t enough responsibility. The local government is not in charge. And I believe there is an industry here that is defrauding taxpayers and lowering public safety,” Dhillon stated.
A similar consent decree between the Minnesota Human Rights Department and the Minneapolis Police Department governs their operations. Police Chief Brian O’Hara and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey promised during a press conference on Wednesday that the city will follow the terms of the signed federal agreement.
“The 169-page consent decree that we signed this year is one that we will abide by in every sentence and paragraph. Frey declared. We will ensure that we are proceeding with each and every sentence and paragraph of the consent decree and the settlement pertaining to the Minnesota Department of Human Rights. “”.
After a federal investigation revealed that Louisville police had a history of discriminating against the Black community and violating constitutional rights, the city of Louisville, Kentucky, reached a deal with the Justice Department to reform its police force.
Craig Greenberg, the mayor of Louisville, stated that the city is still dedicated to reforming its police force and will be accepting applications from individuals who wish to act as independent monitors.
Louisville Police Chief Paul Humphrey stated, “We never paused, we never delayed, and we never took a step back in trying to learn how to do our jobs better and serve the community better throughout all of that process.”. The work that the men and women of LMPD, the men and women of metro government, and the community will do collectively to make us a safer, better place is more important than the words on this paper. “”.
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