Physical Address
304 North Cardinal St.
Dorchester Center, MA 02124
EXCLUSIVE: A conservative legal watchdog is expected to file a brief in a Kentucky court urging a judge against the blessing a consent decree forged by Attorney General Merrick Garland and the city of Louisville and Jefferson County, Ky., that would reform police practices after the controversial 2020 death. Breonna Taylor.
The supervision project placed its amicus brief on the docket in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Kentucky on Friday morning as a judge prepares a timetable to rule on whether to activate the settlement.
Oversight Project Executive Director Mike Howell said the consent decree includes a “list of BLM-type standards that have been upheld over the years since the death of George Floyd (in 2020)” and the riots that followed.
“Louisville would be a sanctuary city for gangbangers,” Howell warned, adding that he hopes Friday’s addition to the docket will give the court pause before agreeing to any accelerated timeline for approval.
CHICAGO POLICE RESOURCE CUT PROPOSAL COULD LAND CITY IN COURT WITH CONSENT DECREE, OFFICIALS WARN
Taylor was killed in a police shooting after Louisville officers tried to serve him on a drug warrant. the boyfriend of Kenneth Walker home, when his friend fired a “warning shot” through the door, striking Officer Jonathan Mattingly in the leg.
A flurry of fire ensued, fatally wounding Taylor, and five officers were later embroiled in legal cases in which one was found guilty of deprivation of rights under color of law for firing blindly at a window in the middle of chaos.
Walker later claimed that he mistook the police for intruders and did not hear them announce themselves. Louisville ended up paying Taylor’s family $12 million in a wrongful death settlement.
last week, Garland announced the consent decree with Louisville, saying it will bring about the systemic reforms needed by police to prevent a repeat of what happened to Taylor.
Howell said, however, that the decree will only affect the police department and also defy the will of Kentucky voters who elected new Republicans on Louisville council on the issue of public order.
“(The decree) basically limits the ability of officers to react quickly and forcefully. It’s very heavy on de-escalation techniques, especially when it comes to this category of people they call ‘behaviourally disabled’ or something like that . effect,” Howell said.
BIDEN ADMIN THROUGH FOIA SEARCHING COMMUNICATIONS RELATED TO 25TH AMENDMENT
Howell said there are concerns about the rising rate of juvenile homicides (violence committed by suspects between the ages of 11 and 17) and that the decree wrongly imposes new standards for dealing with juvenile offenders, as well as the stopping and braking restrictions.
One of the most obvious problems with the settlement is the fact that Louisville aldermen, Kentucky lawmakers and the general public will not be able to make further adjustments to police policies for five years, if the judge signs the decree.
In a consent decree system, an official monitor appointed by the judge, and not the relevant legislature, is the arbiter of the policies included in that agreement, unless the two parties who forged it agree to modify them .
Howell said in that regard, Biden’s Justice Department and Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg, a Democrat, appear to be rushing through the legal process to avoid the possibility. a Trump Justice Department will resist the deal.
“Government’s most basic responsibility is to keep our people safe while protecting constitutional rights and treating everyone fairly.” Greenberg said in a statement about the decree. “As mayor, I promised to take on that responsibility, and I have.”
“The Department of Justice saw the action we’ve already taken and our commitment to aggressively implement police reform. As a result of these improvements, we have a consent decree unlike any other city in the United States.” .
Greenberg said any decree must build on reforms made in recent years, cannot “handcuff police as they work to prevent crime,” and also be fiscally responsible and have a clear end date.
“I felt comfortable signing this because our officers will have clear direction and goals to meet, the DOJ can’t move the goalposts, and our officers can focus on good police work, not paperwork,” he said. add Louisville Police Chief Paul Humphrey.
The Oversight Project’s amicus brief is supported by law enforcement advocacy leaders like Jason Johnson, president of the Law Enforcement Legal Defense Fund.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
Johnson, whose group promotes constitutional policing and studies similar consent decrees, told Fox News Digital it’s clear Biden’s DOJ realizes this deal would be “DOA” when President-elect Donald Trump takes over. oval office
“Most of these police consent decrees are more activist wish lists than effective means of remedying constitutional violations by police agencies. The Justice Department is attempting to impose burdensome rules that far exceed its authority under the law,” Johnson said.
He suggested that letters of technical assistance, which aim to encourage reforms without imposing a judicial arbitrator, are preferred in most cases.
“But activist lawyers in the Biden administration prefer to use a hammer instead of a scalpel. This approach has proven to backfire time and time again, harming public safety, police morale, and police relations -community more than help”.
Meanwhile, Howell said he hopes the Kentucky judge will see that Greenberg and Garland are trying to “turn it into a legislature” when it comes to law enforcement practices.
Under the consent decree system, policy changes will be untouchable by a more hawkish Trump DOJ for up to five years, making the new administration’s planned law enforcement actions be discussed in Louisville.
Criminals will likely endorse the decree, he said, as they will use the encyclopedia of new police standards to their advantage.
