top
US
US
Indybay
Indybay
Indybay
Regions
Indybay Regions North Coast Central Valley North Bay East Bay South Bay San Francisco Peninsula Santa Cruz IMC - Independent Media Center for the Monterey Bay Area North Coast Central Valley North Bay East Bay South Bay San Francisco Peninsula Santa Cruz IMC - Independent Media Center for the Monterey Bay Area California United States International Americas Haiti Iraq Palestine Afghanistan
Topics
Newswire
Features
From the Open-Publishing Calendar
From the Open-Publishing Newswire
Indybay Feature

US Dept of Justice Investigation of Ferguson Police Leads to Firings/Resignations

by Dave Id
This U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division report, released on March 4, is the result of the DOJ's investigation into the Ferguson, Missouri, police department after the rebellions and violent police repression following the murder of Mike Brown by police officer Darren Wilson on August 9, 2014 in the Canfield neighborhood. While the DOJ declined to prosecute Wilson after a St. Louis County grand jury found no probable cause to indict him -- the DOJ not being known as a full-throated or sincere ally of racial justice, to say the least -- the report that emerged from the investigation in Ferguson offers a rare glimpse into a police department widely known for acting as a collections enforcement gang, targeting African Americans, who make up the majority of Ferguson citizens, for abuse and as a primary revenue source for city coffers.
ferguson_police_department_report_usdoj_2015.pdf_600_.jpg
[105-page PDF]


While the departure of any public officials who oversaw and maintained the racist collections racket in Ferguson is long overdue, the report is damning enough that six pubic officials have been fired or forced to resign since it was released last week: police chief Tom Jackson, City Manager John Shaw, Municipal Judge Ronald J. Brockmeyer, police officers Captain Rick Henke and Sargeant William Mudd, and City Clerk Mary Ann Twitty, the last three fired for racist emails. The city manager and police chief will be receiving golden parachutes that include $100,000-plus severance packages.

Mayor James Knowles currently still refuses to resign and the racist power structure in Ferguson remains intact. Surrounding townships in St. Louis County operate in much the same way, with police generating large percentages of municipal revenue on the backs of Black citizens.

On a larger scale, albeit sometimes in a more subtle or less overtly egregious manner, the same conditions that exist in Ferguson can be found across the United States, with heavily armed police forces racially profiling and targeting people of color and the poor, acting as the violent face of an enormous "justice" system that has grown to hold well over two million people behind bars, destroying countless lives and communities.

This report and the departure of several public officials should not be viewed as anything other than one very small step in the right direction in one small town. Download and read the DOJ report posted here to see the inner workings of a blatantly corrupt system, but do not be fooled into thinking that a handful of firings and resignations amount to any broad sense of justice and equality in America.

Add Your Comments
Listed below are the latest comments about this post.
These comments are submitted anonymously by website visitors.
TITLE
AUTHOR
DATE
boris
Fri, Mar 13, 2015 1:38PM
gustav
Thu, Mar 12, 2015 1:38PM
We are 100% volunteer and depend on your participation to sustain our efforts!

Donate

$110.00 donated
in the past month

Get Involved

If you'd like to help with maintaining or developing the website, contact us.

Publish

Publish your stories and upcoming events on Indybay.

IMC Network