Attorney General Jeff Sessions told a police chiefs conference Tuesday that consent decrees are “not a silver bullet” for reforming law enforcement.
Speaking to the midyear International Association of Chiefs Police Conference, Sessions said the court-binding agreements “pull scarce resources and personnel away from crime-fighting in order to satisfy the demands of highly-paid monitors.”
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“I also have grave concerns that some provisions of these decrees reduce the lawful powers of police departments in ways that make cities less safe,” the nation’s top law enforcement official said, according to prepared remarks.
The Justice Department, Sessions said, agrees with some “common-sense reforms” such as de-escalation training, but any reforms must be done in a way that stops the agency from getting “into the business of running the day-to-day operations of local police departments.”
Last week, Sessions ordered a sweeping review of pending and open consent decrees nationwide. Then, DOJ attorneys asked a federal judge to postpone the department’s consent decree — reached in the final days of former President Barack Obama’s tenure — with the city. That request was denied, and U.S. District Judge James K. Bredar approved the agreement.
Baltimore city officials have said they want and need a consent decree for reform, which comes after a scathing review of the city’s police department. There have been cost concerns about the agreement — the proposed police department budget is $487 million, and the monitor that will oversee the reform will make $1.475 million annually.
Sessions reiterated that his DOJ will go through with consent decree reviews and all other DOJ activities to ensure they “promote officer safety, officer morale and public support for your uniquely dangerous work” and “ensure that law enforcement protects and respects the civil rights of all.”
