Several police forces in the United States had consent decrees through the Department of Justice
These settlements enable police agencies to settle lawsuits brought against them by multiple aggrieved parties without admitting responsibility or liability. This report would delve at the consent decree signed between the Department of Justice and the Pittsburg Bureau of Police in 1997. It was the first consent decree signed by a law enforcement agency in the United States.
Several lawsuits have been filed against the Pittsburg police department
Over the course of its history, and many people have admitted to being victims of police brutality. The most affected were Americans of African descent (Black Americans). There were various civil and criminal charges brought against officers belonging to Pittsburg police department before the consent decree was signed by the police department in 1997. Most cases involved officers using excessive force when apprehending or arresting suspects. Citizens complained that the police officers made arbitrary arrests most of which turned out to be false. Most of these complaints were made by young black males who claimed that the police officers arrested them just because of their color. There were reported cases where police officers would beat up suspects without any cause. In some instances police officers were accused of stopping black residents without cause or motive. Furthermore, citizens of all races complained that the police officers were rude when dealing with suspects or when they interacted with them (Rushin, 2017).
Although Pittsburg police department was accused of committing various crimes and civil injustices
The residents were yet to get any real justice. Most cases were thrown out of court due to lack of evidence and where the complainant's word was pitted against an officer, the officer always won. That however changed with the death of Jonny Gammage at the hands of white police officer in 1995. Gammage died of asphyxiation during a struggle with police officers who claimed he had violently resisted arrest. Although his death was ruled as accidental, it galvanized both black and white residents to work together and speak out against police brutality in Pittsburg. There was public uproar in and around Pittsburg that would be felt for years. Investigations would show that Gammage was a good citizen whose reputation was beyond reproach. This would further fuel public outrage and Gammage through his death would become an icon for the public's initiatives against police brutality. Although only three of the five officers involved in Gammage's death were charged and none was be punished, the department of justice intervened and gave the residents of Pittsburg some form of justice that they truly deserved. The department of justice entered a consent decree with Pittsburg police department that would reconcile Pittsburg police with its residents (Rushin, 2017).
Provisions of the Consent Decree
Following the consent decree between the department of justice and Pittsburg police department, there were various stipulations that the police department had to fulfill. The police department agreed not to engage in any practice that would deprive any person their rights, immunities and/or privileges as protected by the Constitution of the United States. They also had to change their management and supervision techniques. These changes included the formation of an 'early warning system' of problematic police officers. This system was basically a database that contained all relevant information on police officers that also included a model that would identify and modify problematic officers. This system was to be automated and be put in place within twelve months of the decree entry. The police department was also to develop and implement a new use of force policy that conformed and was compliant with the law and that was up to current professional standards. This policy would cover such issues as how police conducted strip searches and how they used force when carrying out their duties. The police department also had to undergo regular audit and review of the use of force by all officers. Such audits and reviews would aid in the prevention of use of excessive force by problematic officers (DOJ, 2017).
Furthermore, the police department would continue to provide employee assistant program ('EAP') that provided officers with stress management and counseling services. The office of municipal investigations (OMI) would monitor all the criminal proceedings and civil suits involving police officers. The police department was to take the responsibility of re-training, counseling and disciplining any officers who were involved in civil suits. Pittsburg police department was also required to attend community groups meetings by sending representatives. The police department was also required to train all its police officer in cultural diversity, integrity and ethics as well as on verbal de-escalation techniques. The police department was also tasked with providing all current and future police officers with a copy of the consent decree and had to ensure that each officer read and understood its contents. The officers had also to acknowledge that they had received a copy of this decree and this record would be kept safe for future reference (DOJ, 2017).
The Connection between the Consent Decree and the Initiating Causes
The consent decree aim is to reconcile warring parties and find a solution that will prevent any further hostility between the two warring parties. The consent decree between the department of justice and Pittsburg police department achieves these objectives satisfactorily. For instance, the tipping point that caused mass public outrage against the police department was the death of Gammage in the hands of police officers. His death was as a result of use of excessive use of force by police officers. One of the stipulations of the decree includes the training of police officers on the use of verbal de-escalation techniques and other forms of non-violent methods of confrontation. This would ensure that incidents such as the one that caused Gammage's death would not arise again. Another very fractious issue was the racial abuse of blacks by police officers. The decree requires that all officers undergo training on cultural diversity. This would help the police officers in dealing with citizens of different cultural backgrounds.
Furthermore the police were accused of being generally rude to all members of the public. The decree stipulates that officers should attend community group meetings. This would aid in bringing the police officers closer to the citizens. According to the decree, the police department is also to offer counseling and stress management to its officers. Stress and mistrust of the public is one of the main causes of police rudeness and tackling these issues would help build a healthier and friendlier police department. Most forms of police brutality reported are perpetrated by a few problematic police officers. An 'early warning system' such as the one that is suggested in the consent decree would help identify and neutralize such individuals long before they perpetrate any atrocities. Putting such a system in place ensures that most acts of police brutality and other misdemeanors are prevented (Rushin, 2017).
How the Virtual Police Department can Avoid Consent Decrees
The virtual police department can avoid the Department of Justice oversight by ensuring that its police force does not involve itself in practices that deprive citizens their constitutional rights, privileges, and immunities. To achieve this, the virtual police force must be trained on how to use non-violent means of confrontations such as the use of verbal de-escalation techniques when apprehending suspects. Most police brutality acts reported have almost always involved a confrontation of sorts. The virtual police force should be trained on how to perform searches especially strip searches and pat downs to ensure they do not violate citizens' privacy. The police officers should also be taught on how to use non-lethal means of subduing aggressive suspects. The police force could carry tools such as tasers guns in addition to their firearm and use them to make arrests when less force is needed. The officers should also have basic training in psychology on how to deal with aggressive suspects. Counseling and stress management should also be provided to the police officers to ensure that they are in the right frame of mind to carry out police duties which sometimes require quick and sound judgment. This will prevent cases such as those that involve police shooting unarmed citizens (Rushin, 2017).
The virtual police department should also avoid discriminatory policing. Discrimination by police has been widely reported and many police departments have been accused of this act. The virtual police department can avoid such accusations by the public by ensuring that its police force is well educated on how to act impartially and fairly. To achieve this, the virtual police force should attend training on cultural diversity. This ensures that the police officers have the necessary knowledge on how to deal with citizens of different cultural backgrounds. Such training will also eliminate any stereotyping and other negative beliefs that the virtual police officers could be harboring (Dempsey, 2015).
Other than training its police officers on various issues, the virtual police department will also have to formulate and implement policies that will create a friendly police force. To achieve this, the department should implement community-oriented policing in its police force. Community policing involves creating partnerships between the police and other organizations such as community members, private business enterprises, and the media. It also recognizes that the police cannot solve all public safety problems and will therefore involve the public in developing solutions. Such practices ensure that there is positive interaction between the public and the police and will also help in endearing the virtual police to the public. The virtual police force should employ community-based crime prevention techniques such as neighborhood watch instead of using police patrols. Furthermore, the department should also restructure its operations to emphasize proactive techniques such as foot patrol rather than relying on emergency response-based systems. Such practices will ensure that the public views the police as their protector and not as an enforcer. This would ensure that the public and the virtual police view each other as partners and not as antagonists (Bumgarner, 2014).
The virtual police department should also implement mechanisms of accountability that would dispense justice to any virtual police officer found guilty. The police department should employ community oversight as a means of holding the police force accountable. It should also utilize community oversight to bring the public and the virtual police force even closer. Community oversight involves the use of civilian oversight boards that ensure that any complaints against police officers are fairly handled. Employing community oversight will not only ensure that the virtual police are held accountable but it will also help develop trust between the police force and the general public. Once such trust is developed then the public is bound to be supportive of the virtual police and even if a case of police misdemeanor arises, the public will not bay for blood but will remain calm in the knowledge that the perpetrators of such a crime will be brought to justice (Bumgarner, 2014).
The virtual police department should also put down in writing policy which acts as a guideline on how a police officer should act in any given environment or when faced by any circumstance. Such a policy or guideline instituted and enforced by the virtual police department ensures that there are certain criteria or procedures to be followed in most if not all situations. Where a grievance against an officer arises then the officer can be judged against the set policy to see if the officer followed the set guidelines. When such a policy exists, then virtual police officers will be less inclined to use unnecessary force and will have a set of procedures to help diffuse each situation. The use of technology such as body cameras is a data collection and tracking technique which can also be employed by the virtual police department to enforce accountability. The mere fact that an officer's actions are being recorded will deter most errant and problematic officers from committing any misdemeanors (Dempsey, 2015).
By formulating and implementing the above policies and ensuring that the virtual police force is trained adequately, the virtual police department will not only have a mechanism of keeping errant officers in check but will also empower its officers to perform their duties. Furthermore, by utilizing the above practices, the virtual police department will make the public an ally and ensure that it is never a subject of the Department of Justice oversight.
References
Bumgarner, J. B. (2014). Profiling and Criminal Justice in America: A Reference Handbook. New York,NY: ABC-CLIO.
Dempsey, J. S. (2015). An Introduction to Policing. New York, NY: Cengage Learning.
DOJ (2017) “IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE WESTERN DISTRICT OF PENNSYLVANIA UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Plaintiff V. CITY OF PITTSBURGH, PITTSBURGH BUREAU OF POLICE, And DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY, Defendants.” The United States Department of Justice. Ed. Attoney General. Department of Justice, 1997. Web. 22 June 2017.
Rushin, S. (2017). Federal Intervention in American Police Departments. London, UK: Cambridge University Press.
Stolberg. S.G. (2017) “It Did Not Stick: The First Federal Effort to Curb Police Abuse.” The New York Times. The New York Times, 09 Apr. 2017. Web. 22 June 2017.
