Justice Department Files Lawsuit to Bring Constitutional Policing to Ferguson

Here is the Press Release

Justice Department Files Lawsuit to Bring Constitutional Policing to Ferguson, Missouri

Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch announced today that the Department of Justice filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court against the city of Ferguson, Missouri, alleging a pattern or practice of law enforcement conduct that violates the First, Fourth and 14th Amendments of the Constitution and federal civil rights laws.

“Today, the Department of Justice is filing a lawsuit against the city of Ferguson, Missouri, alleging a pattern or practice of law enforcement conduct that violates the Constitution and federal civil rights laws,” said Attorney General Lynch. “The residents of Ferguson have waited nearly a year for their city to adopt an agreement that would protect their rights and keep them safe. They have waited nearly a year for their police department to accept rules that would ensure their constitutional rights and that thousands of other police departments follow every day. They have waited nearly a year for their municipal courts to commit to basic, reasonable rules and standards. But residents of Ferguson have suffered the deprivation of their constitutional rights – the rights guaranteed to all Americans – for decades. They have waited decades for justice. They should not be forced to wait any longer.”

“Our investigation found that Ferguson’s policing and municipal court practices violate the Constitution, erode trust and undermine public safety,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Vanita Gupta, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “As shown by our lawsuit today, the Justice Department will continue to vigorously enforce the law to ensure that Ferguson implements long-overdue reforms necessary to create constitutional, effective and accountable policing. Ferguson residents and police officers deserve a law enforcement system that productively and fairly serves the entire community.”

The lawsuit, filed pursuant to Section 14141 of the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 and Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VI), alleges that the city of Ferguson, through its police department and municipal court:

• conducts stops, searches and arrests without legal justification, and uses excessive force, in violation of the Fourth Amendment;
• interferes with the right to free expression in violation of the First Amendment;
• prosecutes and resolves municipal charges in a manner that violates due process and equal protection guaranteed by the 14th Amendment; and
• engages in discriminatory law enforcement conduct against African Americans in violation of the 14th Amendment and federal statutory law.

The lawsuit follows a comprehensive investigation of Ferguson’s police department and municipal court conducted by the Civil Rights Division. In March 2015, the department detailed its investigative findings in a 104-page report. The department found that Ferguson’s focus on generating revenue over public safety, together with racial bias, has a profound effect on Ferguson’s police and court practices, resulting in conduct that routinely violates the Constitution and federal civil rights laws.

The complaint alleges that from October 2012 to October 2014, African Americans were more than twice as likely to be searched, to receive a citation or to be arrested, than other stopped individuals. Of all incidents from 2010 to August 2014, African Americans account for 88 percent of all incidents in which a Ferguson police officer reported using force. For municipal offenses where Ferguson police officers have a high degree of discretion in charging, African Americans were again disproportionately represented as compared to their relative representation in Ferguson. While African Americans make up 67 percent of the Ferguson’s population, they make up 95 percent of manner of walking in roadway charges; 94 percent of failure to comply charges; 92 percent of resisting arrest charges; 92 percent of disturbing the peace charges; and 89 percent of failure to obey charges. The department also found that Ferguson’s law enforcement conduct has created a lack of trust between the police department and the community members it serves, especially African Americans.

On Feb. 9, the Ferguson City Council voted to reject the consent decree that the city’s negotiating team had negotiated. Unable to reach a mutually agreed upon court-enforceable settlement to remedy the department's findings, the lawsuit was filed today in order to seek declaratory and injunctive relief to remedy the unlawful conduct identified by the department’s investigation.

Mike Brown was Killed Today

This horrible tragedy sparked a national movement.

We are now aware, ready and awoke.

Mike Brown's death was reminder of the work we must do.

R.I.P. Michael

In Ferguson: Two Cops were Shot

In a different twist, two police officers were shot in Ferguson last night.

St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports:

The shots were fired as police were confronting protesters who had gathered outside the police station.

Ferguson Lt. Col. Al Eickhoff said he didn't think either of the officers were from his department. He also didn't know the extent of their injuries. Eickhoff was not at the scene at the time of the shooting but he said he was headed there.

A police source said one of the officers is a St. Louis County officer and the other a Webster Groves officer. The source said both officers are expected to survive. The officers were taken to Barnes-Jewish Hospital, where there was a large number of police vehicles.

The shots rang out as the protests appeared to be dwindling. Some of the protesters fell to the ground and others ran.

Several members of the media, including a Post-Dispatch reporter and photographer, were near the officers who were hit.

The shots appeared to come from the direction of a block of homes on Tiffin Avenue that intersects West Florissant Avenue, where the police department is located. Witnesses reported two to four shots.

I bet you that Obama and Holder will be blamed for this.

Ferguson Police Chief Tom Jackson Resigns

Ferguson Police Chief Tom Jackson resigns.

If you remember, Tom baffled the report about Michael Brown's death. He talked about Michael being a criminal and then lied about who told him to release that information.

His leadership continued to fall apart as the nation looked into Ferguson and their sad ass police department.

I can go on and on about this fool, but I'll stop. He sent his letter today and  NBC  posted it.

“It is with profound sadness that I am announcing I am stepping down from my position as chief of police for the city of Ferguson Missouri. It has been an honor and a privilege to serve this great city and to serve with all of you. I will continue to assist the city in anyway I can in my capacity as private citizen.”

That's all he said. Personally, he should've said more.

More to come on this story.

WATCH Eric Holder and Ferguson's Mayor responses to the DOJ Investigation Findings

Yesterday, everything went down on Ferguson. Eric Holder released the DOJ report on Ferguson's PD and courts and social media went crazy.

Here is his response



And here is Ferguson Mayor James Knowles edited response

READ The Justice Department's Scathing Report on Ferguson's Police Department & Courts

Ferguson Police Department Report

Justice Department report calls out Ferguson's Police on their Bias and Excessive Force

Ooh wee, The DOJ investigation on Police department in Ferguson is back with some key info on their practices. Trust me, it's some good stuff.

NYT reports

The Justice Department, which opened its investigation after a white Ferguson police officer shot and killed a black teenager last summer, says the discrimination was fueled in part by racial stereotypes held by city officials. Investigators say the officials made racist jokes about blacks on their city email accounts.

The report’s findings were summarized by a federal law enforcement official. The full report is expected to be released on Wednesday. A separate report is expected to clear the officer, Darren Wilson, of any civil rights violations in the shooting of Mr. Brown.

Ferguson officials now face the choice of either negotiating a settlement with the Justice Department or potentially being sued by it on charges of violating the Constitution.

In compiling the report, federal investigators conducted hundreds of interviews, reviewed 35,000 pages of police records and analyzed race data compiled for every police stop. They concluded that, over the past two years, African-Americans — who make up about two-thirds of the city’s population — accounted for 85 percent of traffic stops, 90 percent of citations, 93 percent of arrests and 88 percent of cases in which the police used force.

Black motorists were twice as likely as whites to be searched but were less likely to be found in possession of contraband such as drugs or guns.

The findings reinforce what the city’s African-American residents have been saying publicly for the past year: that years of discrimination and mistrust created the volatile environment that erupted after Mr. Brown’s shooting.

More from MSNBC

In 88% of documented incidents in which police used of force against someone, that person was black. Blacks were even bitten by police dogs disproportionately. In each of the 14 cases involving someone being bitten by a police dog, that person was black.

The poor treatment didn’t end on the street. Blacks in Ferguson were 68% less likely than others to have their cases dismissed by the Municipal Judge and were disproportionately likely to have a warrant issued against them, according to the report. As recently as 2013, 96% of the people who were arrested on an outstanding warrant were black.

But even more than the treatment they received once stopped, the Justice Department’s report found that blacks were used in the criminal justice system to buoy the city’s economy and balance its budget. The practices uncovered by federal investigators have violated residents’ Constitutional Rights of due process and equal protection under the law.

I will post the full report hopefully tomorrow

The DOJ’s report found that blacks were also subject to unfair stops and arrest for minor offenses like “manner of walking” in a roadway.

Since 2010, according to the report, the court has collected more revenue for Failure to Appear in court charges than any other charge. The court collected $442,901 in fines for such violations accounting for nearly 25% of total court revenue that year.

Eric Holder may take Legal Action against Ferguson Police

Two Miles from Ferguson, Another Black Teen shot by the Police

Not again...

Not too far from Ferguson, Antonio Martin was shot by the cops. Here's more from AP:

St. Louis County Police Chief Jon Belmar said the officer was questioning the 18-year-old and another man about a theft late Tuesday at a convenience store in Berkeley when the young man pulled a 9mm handgun on him. The officer stumbled backward but fired three shots, one of which struck the victim, Belmar said.

Berkeley is just a few miles from Ferguson, Missouri, where a white police officer fatally shot Michael Brown, an unarmed black 18-year-old, on Aug. 9. Brown's death sparked weeks of sometimes violent demonstrations and a grand jury's decision to not charge Officer Darren Wilson in the shooting has spurred a nationwide movement to protest police brutality.

Belmar declined to name the 18-year-old killed in Berkeley, but a woman at the scene told reporters she was his mother and identified him as Antonio Martin. Belmar said he was 18 years old and black.

The 34-year-old white police officer, a six-year veteran of the Berkeley Police Department, is on administrative leave pending an investigation, Belmar said.

"He will carry the weight of this for the rest of his life, certainly for the rest of his career," Belmar said. "So there are no winners here."

Police released surveillance video from the parking lot outside the store. The nearly two-minute clip shows two young men leaving the store at about the time a police car rolls up. The officer gets out and speaks with them. About a minute-and-a-half later, the video appears to show one of the men raising his arm, though what he is holding is difficult to see because they were several feet from the camera. Belmar said it was a 9mm handgun.

The other man ran away, and police are searching for him.

It was the third fatal shooting of a black suspect by a white police officer in the St. Louis area since Brown was killed. Kajaime Powell, 25, was killed Aug. 9 after approaching St. Louis officers with a knife. Vonderrit Myers Jr., 18, was fatally shot Oct. 8 after allegedly shooting at a St. Louis officer.

Each shooting has been met by protests, and a crowd quickly gathered late Tuesday and early Wednesday in Berkeley. The demonstration involving up to 300 people turned violent.

More than 50 police officers, some in riot gear, responded. Video showed some wrestling with protesters. Belmar said officers used pepper spray but not tear gas. Four people were arrested on charges of assaulting officers.

So many questions need to by answered.

Ferguson Protesters Alexis Templeton and Brittany Ferrell Wed

This is cool news.

Alexis Templeton and Brittany Ferrell first met during an interesting situation. They were protesting the death of Michael Brown in Ferguson.

During that time, they've fallen in love and took the next step by getting married at St. Louis City Hall this week.

As strong activists, they are out there fighting for justice.

But as a couple, they are proving that love can happen anytime, anyplace.

Is Ben Carson blaming Feminism for Ferguson?

St Louis Rams Players show their support for Ferguson by doing "Hands UP Don't Shoot"

Pat Robertson: Ferguson: 'Not A Case Dealing With Social Justice'

Garth Brooks cancels Tonight Show appearance due to the Civil Unrest in Ferguson

Singer Garth Brooks made a bold move yesterday. Due to the unrest in Ferguson, Missouri, Garth has canceled a Thanksgiving appearance on NBC's "Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon"

He posted this on Facebook

Post by Garth Brooks.

Go, Garth!

WATCH Michael Brown's Parents speaks out on Darren Wilson's Interview

National Bar Association of lawyers' statement on the Ferguson Decision

Photos Officer Darren Wilson after Michael Brown shooting

Where are the bruises and cuts he was supposed to have?

Where are the signs of a fight?

Mess!

Eric Holder's statement: "Justice Department's investigation into the shooting of Michael Brown remains ongoing"

Don Lemon OBVIOUSLY smells Weed amongst Black Protesters in Ferguson

Don Lemon is the worst.

He's at Ferguson now and in typical Don Lemon fashion, he continues his stupid statement tour.

Check out this Vine video


Yes, Don said:
“Obviously there’s a smell of marijuana in the air”

Obviously? That's so typical of him.

HRC releases a Statement on the Grand Jury's Decision on the Michael Brown Case

HRC released the following statement from HRC President Chad Griffin:

“Michael Brown’s family and the American people deserve to have this case fully adjudicated in a public trial. Today’s deeply disappointing decision by the grand jury denies them that opportunity. Until we as a nation make a meaningful commitment to ending police profiling—and to fully prosecuting individual cases of brutality—the kind of violence that ended Michael Brown’s life will only continue. As advocates for equality, it’s our job to show solidarity with a growing national movement to break this cycle of police violence.”

“While we cannot begin to imagine the pain that the Brown family is facing at this moment, we send our thoughts, prayers and condolences to them during this heartbreaking and difficult time. We also stand in solidarity with the family's encouragement of peaceful protests and reflection following this decision.”

In August, HRC joined dozens of prominent national and local LGBT and other civil rights organizations in an open letter of solidarity with the family of Michael Brown. A portion of that letter is included below:

“The lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community cannot be silent at this moment, because LGBT people come from all races, creeds, faiths and backgrounds, and because all movements of equality are deeply connected. We are all part of the fabric of this nation and the promise of liberty and justice for all is yet to be fulfilled.”