US Justice Dept investigating Memphis police for civil rights violations
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[July 28, 2023]
By Jonathan Allen
(Reuters) -The U.S. Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division has
opened an investigation into whether the Memphis Police Department has
an unconstitutional "pattern or practice" of using excessive force and
racial discrimination, department officials announced on Thursday.
Earlier this year, the Justice Department agreed to join city officials
and other agencies in a review of the Memphis Police Department after
its officers fatally beat Tyre Nichols, a 29-year-old Black man, in the
Tennessee city in January.
The federal investigation announced on Thursday is not tied to any
specific incident, Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke said at a
press conference, though she noted Nichols' "tragic death" in her
remarks.
"City and police department leaders recognize the need to scrutinize the
police department's practices to prevent such incidents from ever
happening again," Clarke said. City and police officials had agreed to
cooperate with the investigation, Clarke said.
Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland said in a statement that the city will be
"a good partner" in the new investigation.
"However, I am disappointed that my request was not granted by the
Department of Justice to discuss this step before a decision was made to
move down this path," he said. "I hope the remainder of the process is
more forthright and inclusive than it has been so far."
Memphis Police Chief C.J. Davis also pledged cooperation in a statement
that criticized the conduct of the officers who beat Nichols while
thanking other police officers "that continue to serve our city with
integrity."
The Justice Department had received multiple reports of officers using
excessive force, including when "faced with behavior they perceive to be
insolent," Clarke said. Her office had also received reports that
officers may use force against people who are already restrained or in
police custody.
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The exterior of the Memphis Police
Department North Main precinct is seen in Memphis, Tennessee, U.S.,
January 31, 2023. REUTERS/Alyssa Pointer/File Photo
Federal investigators will also examine reports that officers may be
involved in racial discrimination by disproportionately stopping
Black people for minor violations in the majority-Black city, such
as a broken tail light on their car.
Five officers who took part in the brutal beating of Nichols after
stopping him in his car on Jan. 7 have been fired from the
department and are being prosecuted for second-degree murder and
other charges, to which they have pleaded not guilty. All five
former officers are Black.
Videos of Nichols' deadly beating brought fresh outrage in a country
where multiple police departments have repeatedly been found to use
excessive force against Black people.
The Justice Department has investigated other police departments,
including the Minneapolis Police Department following the 2020
murder of George Floyd, a Black man who was killed by a white police
officer kneeling on his neck for more than nine minutes after Floyd
had been handcuffed and said he couldn't breathe.
Last month, Minneapolis officials agreed to federal oversight of its
police force by the Justice Department after it was found to have a
practice of violating people's civil rights.
(Reporting by Jonathan Allen in New York; Editing by Aurora Ellis
and Deepa Babington)
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