Justice Dept. review shows history of racial bias among Ferguson police department

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Is this a surprise or did we expect this to come? The Justice Department has concluded their review and found that the Ferguson Police Department has a history of racial bias and routinely violated the constitutional rights of black citizens by stopping drivers without reasonable suspicion, making arrests without probable cause and using excessive force, officials said.

Racial Bias Among Ferguson Police Department

Ferguson’s police department and court system “reflect and exacerbate existing racial bias”, the 105-page study found, adding that “discriminatory intent” among city officials.

Unveiling the report at a press conference in Washington D.C., the US attorney general, Eric Holder, blamed Ferguson police for creating a “toxic environment, defined by mistrust and resentment” that had been set off “like a powder keg” by a white officer shooting dead an unarmed black 18-year-old.

“It is time for Ferguson’s leaders to take immediate, wholesale and structural corrective action,” said Holder. “Let me be clear: the United States Department of Justice reserves all its rights and abilities to force compliance and implement basic change. Nothing is off the table.”

The review also found evidence of corruption from white court officials.

The Justice Department outlined 26 recommendations for Ferguson’s police department and courts system, indicating that these may form the basis of a binding reform agreement likely to be drawn up between the city and US officials.

Under such a “consent decree”, Ferguson would be sued by the federal government if it failed to make necessary changes.

Read More on The Guardian