The U.S. DOJ civil rights division is looking into the Portland, Oregon police department's alleged pattern of civil rights violations.
Portland, Oregon- The U.S. Department of Justice is expected to announce Wednesday that it will launch a broader inquiry into whether Portland police are engaged in a "pattern or practice" of federal civil rights violations relating to use of force, sources said.
The head of the U.S. Department of Justice's civil rights division is expected to be in Portland on Wednesday to say his agency will conduct a more comprehensive review of Portland Police Bureau policies and officer actions to determine if police have engaged in a pattern of unnecessary force.
In the wider civil investigation, which could last up to 1 1/2 years, the civil rights division's attorneys will evaluate bureau policies, procedures and practices, as well as specific officer-involved fatal shootings or deaths in custody, such as James P. Chasse Jr.'s death in 2006. If violations are identified, the federal agency would recommend remedies and may monitor the Police Bureau until it's satisfied the bureau has addressed the problems.
City Commissioner Dan Saltzman, who served as police commissioner at the time of Campbell's shooting, asked federal officials to not only investigate the Campbell death but also initiate a broader review of the bureau. The federal agency has opened similar inquiries this year into police departments in Seattle and Newark, N.J., and is weighing one in Denver.
In deciding whether to conduct a broader inquiry, the civil rights division considers the type and seriousness of alleged misconduct, the size of the police agency, the amount of detailed, credible information available and potential impact, its website says.
Assistant U.S. Attorney General Thomas E. Perez, who oversees the civil rights division, is scheduled to be in Portland on Wednesday to make the announcement.
To pursue federal civil rights charges against individual officers, prosecutors would have had to establish beyond a reasonable doubt that an officer willfully deprived Aaron Campbell of a constitutional right. Accident, mistake, fear, negligence or bad judgment are insufficient to establish a criminal violation.
Link:
http://www.oregonlive.com/portland/index.ssf/2011/06/post_91.html