Thursday, September 26, 2024

Feds Bust Lexington PD

 The Justice Department issued the following statement. 

Following a comprehensive investigation, the Justice Department announced today that the City of Lexington, Mississippi (City), and Lexington Police Department (LPD) engage in a pattern or practice of conduct that deprives people of their rights under the U.S. Constitution and federal law. Lexington is a town of approximately 1,200 people, located about an hour outside of Jackson, Mississippi.

Specifically, the Justice Department finds that LPD unlawfully

  • Arrests, jails and detains people who cannot pay fines or fees, without assessing their ability to pay;
  • Uses excessive force;
  • Conducts stops, searches and arrests without probable cause, including jailing people on illegal “investigative holds” and arresting people solely because they owe outstanding fines;
  • Imposes money bail without justification or assessment of ability to pay;
  • Jails people without prompt access to court;
  • Violates the rights of people engaged in free speech and expression, including by retaliating against people who criticize the police;
  • Discriminates against Black people; and
  • Operates under an unconstitutional conflict of interest because LPD’s funding depends on the money it raises through its enforcement.

“Today’s findings show that the Lexington Police Department abandoned its sacred position of trust in the community by routinely violating the constitutional rights of those it was sworn to protect,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “The Justice Department’s investigation uncovered that Lexington police officers have engaged in a pattern or practice of discriminating against the city’s Black residents, used excessive force, and retaliated against those who criticize them. Additionally, Lexington’s approach to fines and fees — including unlawfully arresting, jailing, and detaining people based on their failure to pay money without assessing if they can afford to do so — has been devastating for its residents. Being poor is not a crime, but practices like these amount to punishing people for poverty. People in that community deserve better, and the Justice Department is committed to working with them, the City, and the Police Department to make the City safer for all its citizens.”


“Public safety depends on public confidence in our justice system,” said Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco. “The Lexington Police Department’s incarceration of individuals because they could not afford to pay fines — as detailed in today’s findings report — undermined that confidence and violated the civil rights of Lexington residents. I’m grateful to the Civil Rights Division for its thorough investigation and continued work to address these findings.”

“Lexington is a small, rural community but its police department has had a heavy hand in people’s lives, wreaking havoc through use of excessive force, racially discriminatory policing, retaliation, and more. In every corner of our country, police officers must respect people’s constitutional rights and treat people with dignity,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “After an extensive review, we found that police officers in Lexington routinely make illegal arrests, use brutal and unnecessary force, and punish people for their poverty — including by jailing people who cannot afford to pay fines or money bail. For too long, the Lexington Police Department has been playing by its own rules and operating with impunity — it’s time for this to end. Our findings report furthers the Justice Department’s commitment to ensuring fairness and the rule of law.”

“Police have the authority to enforce the law, not to act as debt collectors for the City, extracting payments from the poor with threats of jail,” said U.S. Attorney Todd Gee for the Southern District of Mississippi. “No matter how large or small, every police department has an obligation to follow the Constitution.”

Based on the department’s investigation, over the past two years, LPD has made nearly one arrest for every four people in town, primarily for low-level offenses and traffic violations. That is more than 10 times the per capita arrest rate for Mississippi as a whole. Many of these arrests were for non-criminal conduct, like owing outstanding fines and using profanity. Most of those arrested are Black people. In 2023, Black people were 17.6 times more likely to be arrested by LPD than white people were.

When making low-level arrests, LPD uses tactics normally reserved for serious offenses. For example, LPD officers broke down a Black man’s door to arrest him for swearing at a public official. In another case, while attempting to arrest a man for having a tinted windshield, officers followed the man’s car to his house, forced their way into his home, and tased him for 15 seconds. On the same day the Justice Department opened the investigation, LPD officers chased a man accused only of disturbing a business and tased him nine times.

LPD’s enforcement strategy has put hundreds of people in debt to the police department. In a town of about 1,200 people, the total sum of outstanding fines owed to LPD is more than $1.7 million.

The department also found that LPD lacks any meaningful accountability system and that people experiencing poverty who are accused of crimes in Lexington regularly lack access to counsel, both of which allow LPD’s misconduct to continue unchecked.

The Justice Department opened its investigation on Nov. 8, 2023. Career attorneys and staff in the Civil Rights Division’s Special Litigation Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Mississippi conducted the investigation. The team was assisted in this investigation by experts in law enforcement practices. The team conducted an extensive review of LPD’s records, including hundreds of arrest reports and municipal court records and hundreds of hours of body-worn camera footage. The team also interviewed City and LPD leadership and line officers, accompanied officers on ride-alongs, observed the Lexington Municipal Court, and met with dozens of community members.

In February, while the investigation was ongoing, the department issued a letter to the City of Lexington raising significant concerns regarding their practice of jailing people for unpaid fines without first assessing whether they can afford to pay them.

The City and LPD cooperated fully with the investigation. The City and LPD have committed to working cooperatively with the department to address the violations identified in the department’s findings.

The department conducted this investigation pursuant to 34 U.S.C. § 12601 (Section 12601), which prohibits law enforcement officers from engaging in a pattern or practice of conduct that deprives people of rights protected by the Constitution or federal law. Section 12601 authorizes the Attorney General to file a lawsuit in federal court seeking court-ordered remedies to eliminate a pattern or practice of unlawful conduct.

This investigation reflects the Justice Department’s efforts to ensure constitutional policing and to combat unlawful practices with respect to fines and fees. The department previously addressed policing for profit in its findings on the Ferguson Police Department in Missouri in 2015. The consent decree that followed has resulted in the dismissal of about 63,000 citations and a reduction of over $1 million in fines and fees. In July 2022, the department filed a Statement of Interest in Coleman v. Brookside, explaining that judges, prosecutors, and police violate the Constitution when they are motivated by profit rather than justice. And in April 2023, the department issued a Dear Colleague Letter containing updated guidance on fines and fees for state and local courts.

The department will be conducting outreach to members of the Lexington community for input on remedies to address the department’s findings. Individuals may submit recommendations toCommunity.LexingtonMS@usdoj.gov.

The Justice Department will hold a public community meeting on Sept. 26 at 6:00 p.m. CT at St. Paul C.O.G.I.C. Fellowship Hall, 17214 Highway 17 South, Lexington, MS 39095. Members of the public are encouraged to attend.

Additional information about the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division is available on its website at www.justice.gov/crt. Additional information about the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Mississippi is available at www.justice.gov/usao-sdms. Information specific to the Civil Rights Division’s Police Reform Work can be found at www.justice.gov/crt/file/922421/download.


39 comments:

Anonymous said...

If I understand this correctly it is now against the law to arrest people who break the law.

Anonymous said...

I'll bet every person owing a fine has an iphone. In other words, they pay for what they want to pay for.

Anonymous said...

It used to be true that DOJ charges such as these were a fairly reliable indication that there was a serious problem. Unfortunately, that is no longer true. Lexington Police may be out of control as alleged. Or, equally possible, it may be a politicized DOJ signaling their political correctness. Once credibility is lost, it's hard to regain -- and we are all poorer for it.

Anonymous said...

I assume Lexington is predominately a " black" community ? So is the LPD the same make up ?

Anonymous said...

About Damn Time!!! About 30 yrs ago we were going to the delta fishing & had a flat bottom boat in the back of the pickup. A cop stopped us up on the square & said it was unlawful to carry that boat in the bed. Made us follow him to city hall to paya fine & when we came out that boat was gone! Cop was gone! City stole it while we were inside & later sold it at an auction! Only reason we got the boat back was I reported it stolen & when the new owner went to register it Game & Fish caught it. Been that way for years over there. Dont matter what color you are if you travel across that square watch your ass!

Anonymous said...

Maybe I missed something but isn't Lexington about 80% Black? Those Whites who are still there are mostly elderly or wealthy enough to stay out of trouble. How is the arrest rate out of line?
Just askin'

Anonymous said...

In the grand scheme of things this Federale caught fish is infinitely smaller than the ones Shad catches.

Anonymous said...

Anyone who has driven through a small rural town anywhere in the country has likely driven through a dangerous risk of being falsely arrested on some trumped up charge and milked for money by corrupt police and judicial officials. These places exist in Mississippi Louisiana, Alabama, Nevada, Texas, Arkansas, Oklahoma, California, West VA, you name it.

Anonymous said...

The LPD chief was fired two years ago for using racist slurs. These tiny one-horse towns shouldn't be incorporated, period. It amounts to creating little "rice bowls" and empires and often corruption.

Anonymous said...

As of 2022 Lexington was 74% black, 21% white, 5% other. Source: https://www.city-data.com/city/Lexington-Mississippi.html

Anonymous said...

quite a few big announcements with AG Garland's visit. Wonder if the week rounds out with an announcement concerning Jody Owens and the Mayor

Anonymous said...

In Mexico, self appointed fake Federales who were actually banditos wearing antique Pancho Villa garb,would stand out in the highway stopping cars, on the way to Mazatlan, for example. They would demand a fee or threaten to open all your luggage. I refused to pay and started getting all the luggage out onto the shoulder as many cars were backing up. He found some English and angrily told me to pack up my shit and fuck off, as he waved the next car to stop.

These crooked USA Fed maggots remind me of those Banditos.

Anonymous said...

Holmes County is the wild wild west when it comes to theft. Lots of farms and hunting camps in that area get broken into and stuff stolen. I hear rumor that if you don't want your camp broken into, you have to contribute to the sheriff's re-election fund or good luck. If you don't contribute and report a theft, they won't even come out to make a report.

Anonymous said...

3:53 I have seen that part in we're the Millers. Tell the truth, you were considering it until you realized he was talking pesos and not American currency.

Anonymous said...

A majority black town how can they discriminate against the black residents. A black police force is discriminate black people. Only in Holmes County.

Anonymous said...

Boy oh boy are the racist out today on JJ. I mean some of you don't even try to hide your white pointy hats.

Anonymous said...

Holmes County law is the biggest joke in Mississippi. https://youtu.be/MazueQuEYSo?si=RkacLKgWITcH8Y7Y

Anonymous said...

Well have I got news for them in Rankin County!!

Anonymous said...

2:22 is correct
DOJ probably spent more than the entire city budget for 5 yrs to tell them not to arrest any black people, if you find them guilty of a crime you can fine them, but if they don’t pay the fine there is nothing you can do to them. So, how many people do you think will pay their fines. Ask Jackson water dept how their no cutoff plan worked.

Anonymous said...

Lexington will be a great place to live after the Feds get everything corrected.

Anonymous said...

The town will be sued and the tax payers will have to pay. It’s time for law enforcement officers to pay for law suites that they caused

Anonymous said...

"if you come right, things'll be right"

Anonymous said...

Are all of the law enforcement in Ms. crooked? Do they all have their own goon squad? Are they all going to pay up when they are sued?

anonymous said...

how much
$ was spent on this investigation to tell us what we already know?

Krusatyr said...

Allo, I meant to mention that the fake Federale sported a badge and a moustache. I don't know the Miller's reference you make, but have clear memory of the event from 1971. My girlfriend and I had a magnificent 2 month vacation in Mazatlan and Puerto Vallarta, often camping on beaches where I swam and, on shrimp bait, caught sea bass to grill over coconut shells for fish tacos.

Anonymous said...

The over active police department of the small southern town is a necessary evil. Stop collecting fines and property taxes go up. Stop arresting hoodlums and crime goes up. This town will fold. Property owners should carry guns and be ready to shoot.

Anonymous said...

Holmes, Carroll, Montgomery, and Grenada are all the wild west and give Rankin a run for the money.

Anonymous said...

I guess it’s too idealistic to expect the good cops to keep the bad cops in check. Tuesday, on a trip to Tylertown on I-55, I had three Highway Patrol officers pass me at unbelievably high rates of speed. I was driving 70 mph. All three, at separate time passed me, easily going 90-100 mph, no light or sirens. Another five in a caravan, with light and sirens on at at least 90 mph. All incredibly dangerous. Please all police officers, do the right thing, be the good guys. Protect and Serve.Be something the public can believe in .

Anonymous said...

So the corrupt DOJ is calling the Lexington PD corrupt. If I'm a juror, I'd side with the amateur corrupt PD over the professional crooks in the DOJ.

Anonymous said...

4:51 PM you really gotta lose that race card play. It’s a tired song for sure and started sounding like crying wolf long, long ago.

Study Robert L “Bob’ Woodson, Shelby Steele, Thomas Sowell and never forget what Malcom X said about white liberals. You Can Do It!

Anonymous said...

Nottingham

Anonymous said...

To Merrick Garland-

Do You realize that you are working against your party's own interest?

Anonymous said...

I'm white, and an attorney. Got pulled over in Lexington for not completely stopping at a stop sign. Officer took my license, told me I had to follow him to the municipal court and pay the fine on the spot, in cash, or I would be arrested until it could be paid.

Anonymous said...

@9:16 AM Please tell us what came next? Do you actually follow him to the court for an infraction and pay?

Anonymous said...

@4:53. That video is the first thing that came to mind when I was reading this. Holmes Co. SO is literally a non-functioning LE Agency.

Anonymous said...

After a tour at Lexington PD an officer may then apply to Rankin's Goon Squad.

Anonymous said...

“ Most of those arrested are Black people. In 2023, Black people were 17.6 times more likely to be arrested by LPD than white people were.”

But aren’t you 17.6 times more likely to be black in Holmes County? I mean most of those NOT arrested are also black people.

Anonymous said...

So next time MHP stops me for speeding can I demand they in esigate if I have the ability to pay a fine before they write me a ticket???

Anonymous said...

This is Mississippi, you can always just hand the fine money to the officer and they will handle the ticket for you. It will be "expunged" off your driving record too.


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