After critical DOJ findings, Ferguson fires police employee
FERGUSON, Missouri -- Mayor James Knowles said one police department employee was fired and two others placed on administrative leave pending an investigation into racially disparaging e-mails discovered in a Justice Department investigation.
The news comes just hours after the Justice Department revealed findings that cleared former Ferguson, Mo., police officer Darren Wilson in the shooting death of Michael Brown, but also found severe racial bias in policing of citizens there.
"Let me be clear, this type of behavior will not be tolerated in the Ferguson Police Department or in any department in the city of Ferguson," said Knowles.
At a Wednesday evening press conference, Mayor Knowles said that the Justice Department's findings allow his administration to focus on racial problems in Ferguson and in the St. Louis region as well.
Ferguson Police Chief Tom Jackson did not attend the press conference and there was no explanation why he was not there.
Earlier, Attorney General Eric Holder announced the result of two investigation into the practices of the Ferguson Police Department. He said the department created the atmosphere for the intense and angry reaction of the community after Michael Brown, an unarmed 18-year-old black teenager, was shot to death over the summer. The shooting sparked months of massive and at times dangerous demonstrations in Ferguson and across the country.
The DOJ investigation of Brown's death at the hands of Wilson found that the evidence supported his version of events. In November, a grand jury decided not to indict Wilson in Brown's death.
"This outcome is supported by the facts we have found -- but I also know these findings may not be consistent with some people's expectations," Holder said.
But as for Ferguson itself, Holder said the department found egregious evidence of mistreatment of African American citizens by the police.
"This investigation found a community that was deeply polarized; a community where deep distrust and hostility often characterized interactions between police and area residents," Holder said. He described Ferguson as "a community where local authorities consistently approached law enforcement not as a means for protecting public safety, but as a way to generate revenue. A community where both policing and municipal court practices were found to disproportionately harm African American residents. A community where this harm frequently appears to stem, at least in part, from racial bias - both implicit and explicit."
Holder's findings showed a bias in issues ranging from a disproportionate number of arrests of black Ferguson residents, to excessive fines and fees related to parking tickets issued to the black population.
The attorney general attributed the lack of trust in the community to "numerous constitutional violations by their law enforcement officials including First Amendment abuses, unreasonable searches and seizures, and excessive and dangerous use of force; exacerbated by severely disproportionate use of these tactics against African Americans; and driven by overriding pressure from the city to use law enforcement not as a public service, but as a tool for raising revenue."
Knowles announced changes in the structure of fees and fines had already been made. In September, an ordinance eliminating unnecessary court and police operation fees was passed, including costs in reimbursing the city for towing.
Another ordinance was passed that sets a cap on the amount of municipal court revenue that can be used as part of the city's budget. It is now limited to 15 percent.
The city has also announced the development of a Citizens Review Board, which has met several times over the past few months; implementation of body and dashboard cameras and improved and diverse recruitment of police officers. At the press conference, Knowles said three are being hired. Also, an independent consultant will be hired to study the practices of the Ferguson Police Department.