United States Attorney General Merrick Garland released a Statement saying (April 21) that the Justice Department has started an investigation into the Minneapolis Police Department’s “pattern or practice.” According to Garland, the investigation will ascertain whether the department has a pattern or practice of discriminatory policing.
The statement came one day after former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin was convicted of George Floyd’s violent killing.
“Today, I am announcing that the Justice Department has launched a civil investigation into the Minneapolis Police Department to ascertain whether it engages in a pattern or practice of unconstitutional, unlawful policing,” Garland said Wednesday.
The investigation will now be spurred by “knowledgeable attorneys” from the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division and the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Minnesota, Garland clarified.
“The new civil investigation is distinct from and independent of the Justice Department’s originally scheduled federal criminal investigation into George Floyd’s death,” he added.
Together with the criminal investigation, Garland stated that the Justice Department “also has the authority to file a civil lawsuit.”
“Typically, when the Justice Department identifies illegal practices or patterns of conduct, the local police department enters into a proposed settlement or consent decree to guarantee that quick and appropriate action is taken to bring policing practices into compliance with the law,” he added.
Numerous representatives of the Minneapolis Police Department, both active and retired, testified against Chauvin during his trial, including Police Lt. Richard Zimmerman, Chief Medaria Arradondo, a use-of-force trainer, and a former sergeant. Arradondo stated last year that Floyd’s murder was not the result of a “lack of training.”
“Mr. George Floyd’s tragic demise was not the result of a lack of training; the training was present. Chauvin was aware of his actions,” he stated. “The officers were aware of what was occurring; one purposefully caused it, while the others failed to prevent it.”
On Sunday, April 11th, two officers In Virginia aimed their guns and pepper-sprayed a black army lieutenant. Due to this, the Town of Windsor, Virginia, fired both of the officers. The Town stated that officers Joe Gutierrez and Daniel Crocker overstep Windsor Police Department’s use-of-force policy during their confrontation with Second Lt. Caron Nazario. Due to conflict, the Town terminated officer Gutierrez’s.
With the positive atmosphere of families and residents, The Town of Windsor prides itself in its charm and the community-wide respect of the Police Department. The statement said that the terrible event cast a negative light on our community. So rather than deflect blame, we have discussed the matter with our personnel. We are speaking directly to the community to explain to our community stakeholders.
After the termination of the officer by the Town of Windsor, the Virginia government follows the news. Due to this incident, governor Ralph Northam calls for an outside investigation into the Virginia state police.
Governor of Virginia Ralph Northam also stated on his disturbing event. ” Our Commonwealth has done important work on police reform, but we must keep working to ensure Virginians are safe during interactions with police, the enforcement of laws is fair and equitable and people are held accountable” The governor is calling this a terrible event in his tweet.
As per reporter, the confrontation started between police officers Gutierrez and Lt. Nazario and Crocker when they pulled over a Lieutenant’s car at a traffic stop in December. Lieutenant Nazario is black and Latino. He was traveling back home when the Police pulled over his vehicle. Both officers drew their guns after pulling Nazario and order him to get out of the car.
Lieutenant Nazario was genuinely afraid to exit from his car. Nazario was refusing to get out of his car. In the meantime, one officer shouted, “Yes, you should be,” and dragged Nazario out of his vehicle & sprayed him on the face with the pepper spray. A video reveals from Nazario’s cell phone and the officer’s body camera that also showed that one cop is striking the Lieutenant with his knee and can be saying and repeating, “This is fucked up.”
The Lieutenant took legal action and filed a lawsuit against the two police officers. The army officer says that the two cops illegally barricaded and claimed that cops violated his Fourth and Fifth Amendments rights. The Police say that the Army officer’s car was unregistered and also his rear license plate was missing, But the Army officer says that the vehicle was new and had a temporary tag in the rear window. Nazario believes that he was racially profiled because of his race.
Prosecutors have sought an arrest warrant in combination with a rise in Kyle Rittenhouse’s bond, as he supposedly violated the terms of his release. The investigation by the Kenosha Police Department revealed that the teen is living in an address not listed with the court for two months now. .
A man in Texas filed a lawsuit against two cops, as they pepper sprayed him for taking a video of his son’s arrest. It was to his grandmother’s house that Dylan Puente was driving on August 15, and cops pulled him over and issued a ticket as he made a right turn that was wide. After he decided to roll up his window, Sergeant Blake Shimanek arrested the 22-year-old, stating he was acting suspicious.
Wednesday witnessed the Department of Justice filing a lawsuit against Alabama in relation to the prison conditions in the region. According to the DOJ, the state is unable to ensure the safety of male inmates when other inmates become violent and prison staff is engaging in excessive force.
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