Obama Administration Investigations

At a record-setting pace, the Department of Justice is currently conducting 17 separate investigations to determine whether law enforcement officers are guilty of brutality or discrimination against minorities. This, as reported by the Washington Post, is the highest number of such investigations at one time in American history.

The excerpt below highlights a few of the stories behind investigations and contains a dramatic quote claiming one law enforcement agency shows a “staggering level of crime and corruption” within its ranks.

In recent months, the Justice Department has begun inquiries into major city police departments like Portland, Or., where officers shot several people who had mental health issues, and Seattle, where police were accused of gunning down a homeless Native American woodcarver. The department issued a scathing report this month accusing Puerto Rico police of a “staggering level of crime and corruption.”

And later. . .

Thomas E. Perez, assistant attorney general for civil rights, said the investigations into local police are “really a cornerstone of our work.” He was speaking to reporters about the report on Puerto Rico, which accused officers of widespread brutality, unconstitutional arrests and targeting people of Dominican descent.

Much can be said, and many personal accounts float around all over the country of law enforcement bias against minorities. These investigations are being conducted amidst events like the recent one in Texas where the United States Supreme Court halted the execution of Duane Buck who claims that racial motives during trial/sentencing led to his death sentence.