Justice Department to investigate policing practices in Ferguson, MO
The Justice Department is opening an investigation into the practices of the police department in the city of Ferguson, Missouri, which has been the focus of both the national and international media after the shooting death of an unarmed black teenager named Michael Brown by a white police officer named Darren Wilson.
A press release from the Department of Justice made clear the new investigation is separate and distinct from the Justice Department's ongoing civil rights investigation into the shooting death of Michael Brown.
The purpose will be to investigate alleged constitutional abuses by the Ferguson Police Department. In one widely reported incident, a black man was beaten by officers of the police department. Lacking a proper cause to charge the man, the police claimed destruction of city property because he had bled on the attacking officers' uniforms.
The press release said the investigation will focus on the use of force by the police department, and its policies and practices regarding stops, searches, and seizures of private goods. It will also evaluate racial profiling within the department, and the treatment of prisoners within the Ferguson jail system.
Such investigations into policing practices by the Justice Department are not uncommon. Attorney General Eric Holder said as much in remarks about the new investigation, "The Department of Justice is working across the nation to ensure that the criminal justice system is fair, constitutional and free of bias. The interventions in Missouri are an important part of that commitment. While there is much work left to do, we feel confident that there are solutions to any issues we find and that community trust in law enforcement can be restored and maintained."
The most recent major cities to be subject to such investigations are Albuquerque, New Mexico, and Newark, New Jersey. In both cases, the Justice Department found numerous rights violations and incidents of excessive force.
