Fact vs. Fiction

Contrary to the rumor mill, it takes more than a single letter or telephone call to get the Department of Justice to launch a full-blown investigation of a police department ... much more.

If you don’t believe me, I encourage you to go to www.justice.gov/crt/ and in the “search box” type in “police misconduct pattern or practice program.” Click on Civil Rights Division Home Page.

That will bring you to a page that says Special Litigation Section Frequently Asked Questions. Scroll down to the heading Department of Justice Police Misconduct Pattern or Practice Program and you now have all the answers to how the Department of Justice goes about conducting an investigation of a police department.

As you can see, the Department of Justice receives thousands of complaints annually in which it is asked to investigate alleged police misconduct.

In its initial review, investigators make an assessment as to whether or not the allegation, if proven, would establish a violation of a federal law the Department of Justice has authority to enforce.

If so, investigators then assess whether or not the violation is the actions of one or two police officers, or a pattern or practice of misconduct that is far more widespread.

If it is determined the alleged complaint of misconduct is attributed to one or two police officers, the Department of Justice will take no further action, or refer it to another one of its offices.

If the initial review does not produce evidence of a pattern or practice violation, the Department of Justice closes out the matter.

The Department of Justice readily admits there are more credible allegations of a pattern or practice that warrants an investigation than it has been able to pursue, which means it has to make a decision as to who to investigate. The Department of Justice states it makes its decision on several critical factors, including the seriousness of the alleged misconduct; the type of alleged misconduct; the size and type of the law enforcement agency; the amount of detailed, credible information available; and the potential precedent-setting impact. 

Investigators typically focus on allegations of excessive force, including associated search and seizure issues, and racial or ethnic discrimination in traffic or pedestrian stops.

If the initial review uncovers information tending to support the existence of a pattern or practice violation, the Department of Justice will seek authorization from the Assistant Attorney General to have its Civil Rights Division conduct a formal pattern or practice investigation.

To that end, on April 20, 2010, the Assistant Attorney General, Thomas E. Perez, provided written testimony regarding Discriminatory Policing to the Judiciary Committee of the United States Senate. Assistant Attorney General Thomas E. Perez reported the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice has opened four investigations to evaluate whether there is evidence of a pattern or practice of discriminatory policing in violation of Section 14141 of the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994. 

He specifically named the investigation of the police department in East Haven, Connecticut, that began in September 2009, in which the Civil Rights Division is looking into discriminatory police practices, unlawful searches and seizures, and excessive use of force.

For the record, representatives from the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice formally notified the Town of its investigation in December 2009 -- three months later.

One year later, December 2010, the Federal Bureau of Investigation formally notified the Town it too was conducting an investigation of the East Haven Police Department.

Like it or not, these are the facts.