The Justice Dept. says police in Springfield, Mass., have entered an agreement to mandate reforms after a 2020 investigation found the narcotics bureau had engaged in a pattern of excessive force.
The Department of Justice building in Washington, D.C., on Feb. 9. Photo: Stefani Reynolds/AFP via Getty Imagesthat the Springfield, Massachusetts, Police Department has entered into a "court enforceable consent decree" to mandate reforms within the department.This marks the first consent decree launched by the DOJ on policing since Attorney General Merrick Garland reversed
that limited the use of these kind of agreements to change police departments and government agencies.on Wednesday, justice officials and city leaders said the court-approved agreement would "lay out a road map for the department to improve accountability by requiring officers to report "all uses of force, including punches and kicks" and creating an investigation team to review the most serious incidents.
Under Garland, the department has opened up investigations into police departments in Minneapolis; Louisville, Kentucky; Phoenix and Mount Vernon, New York, according toIn 2016, Springfield's narcotics officer Gregg Bigda kicked and spat at a juvenile while making an arrest, saying "welcome to the white man’s world,” according to aThe investigation concluded that the Springfield Narcotics Bureau had engaged in a pattern of excessive force directly attributable to "systemic...