The U.S. Justice Department released a report that torched the Albuquerque Police Department saying the department has engaged in a pattern or practice of using excessive force that violates the constitution and federal law.
Albuquerque police responded to threats with bullets, killing 23 people and injuring 14 others in the last four years, according to published reports.
Officers acted violently by kicking, punching and restraining nonthreatening people, and seldom were the officers reprimanded. Many of the victims suffered from mental illnesses, and some were disabled, elderly or drunk, according to the the 16-month investigation.
We reviewed all fatal shootings by officers between 2009 and 2012 and found that officers were not justified under federal law in using deadly force in the majority of those incidents. This level of unjustified, deadly force by the police poses unacceptable risks to the Albuquerque community.
Read the full report: U.S. Justice Department Report
The department delivered a letter setting forth these findings to Albuquerque Mayor Richard J. Berry and Police Chief Gorden Eden this morning.
“We are very concerned by the results of our investigation and look forward to working with the city of Albuquerque to develop a set of robust and durable reforms,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Jocelyn Samuels for the Civil Rights Division. “Our work to assist police departments around the nation is intended to advance important principles. Holding police accountable for constitutional practices improves public confidence, promotes public safety and makes the job of providing police services safer, easier and more effective. Public trust has been broken in Albuquerque, but it can be repaired through this process.”
In a statement, Stephanie Lopez, president of the Albuquerque Police Officers Association, said that her organization welcomed the recommendations.
“Change is hard for everyone,” she said, adding that the police force “looks forward to learning and advancing” and making improvements.
The investigation was launched on Nov. 27, 2012, and was conducted jointly by the department’s Civil Rights Division and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Mexico.
The U.S. Justice Department found reasonable cause to believe that APD engages in a pattern or practice of excessive force in violation of the Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. The department specifically found three patterns of excessive force:
- · Albuquerque officers too frequently use deadly force against people who pose a minimal threat and in situations where the conduct of the officers heightens the danger and contributes to the need to use force;
- · Officers use less lethal force, including electronic controlled weapons, on people who are passively resisting, non-threatening, observably unable to comply with orders or pose only a minimal threat to the officers; and
- · Encounters between APD officers and persons with mental illness and in crisis too frequently result in a use of force or a higher level of force than necessary
The department also found systemic deficiencies of the Albuquerque police which contribute to these three patterns, including: deficient policies, failed accountability systems, inadequate training, inadequate supervision, ineffective systems of investigation and adjudication, the absence of a culture of community policing and a lack of sufficient civilian oversight.
Police departments in several other cities have been targets of similar investigations, also in the wake of accusations of bias, brutality and other types of misconduct, according to a report in the New York Times.
Some cities — including Seattle, Portland, Ore., and New Orleans — remain under federal oversight as they try to adjust to new policies and procedures that took months, sometimes years, to put in effect, the Times reported.