From Nola.com:
Consent decree here….
U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder and local officials will announce Tuesday in New Orleans a wide slate of reforms in the New Orleans Police Department, ending months of negotiation over the most far-reaching federal consent decree of its kind in the country, according to a source with knowledge of the negotiations. The 125-page agreement, which a federal judge must endorse, will serve as a road map for change in the city’s long-embattled police department. The federal oversight mandated by the agreement will stick for at least four years, to be overseen by a monitor and a federal court judge, the source told The Times-Picayune.
Under the terms of the deal, the NOPD will be forced to address numerous deficiencies, most of which the U.S. Department of Justice highlighted last year in a withering critique of virtually every aspect of the force.
In order to break away from federal scrutiny, the agency must be free of violations for two consecutive years, the source said. If the NOPD fails to do so, a federal judge can extend the oversight or impose other penalties.
The decree dictates changes big and small, from policy tweaks to administrative reconfigurations and more. Among the changes outlined in the decree: how cops must conduct traffic stops, searches and arrests; how they examine officer use of force; and how they interrogate citizens. Unlike now, officers will be required to audiotape and videotape every suspect interview, the source said.
In addition, the federal order mandates changes to the NOPD’s troubled system in which officers work off-duty, paid security details for private interests. The city and the department previously announced changes in the details system, creating an oversight agency within City Hall, a move that aligns with what is required under the decree, the source said.
Mitchell Rivard, spokesman for the U.S. Department of Justice, declined to comment when contacted by The Times-Picayune on Monday. U.S. Attorney Jim Letten, who oversees the eastern district of Louisiana, also declined to comment.
A spokesman for Mayor Mitch Landrieu did not return a call for comment.
NOPD spokeswoman Remi Braden declined to comment. She said police Superintendent Ronal Serpas was out of town Monday.
“We’re not confirming anything about the consent decree, and we can’t discuss the consent decree,” she said.
New mandates for NOPD
For months, City Attorney Richard Cortizas and his subordinates have negotiated aspects of the decree with the federal government, including members of the Justice Department and Letten’s staff.
Some of the more contested changes include investigations into the use of police force and implementation of a new system of police details that Landrieu outlined in late May.
Investigations into police shootings and other use of force will be taken out of the homicide division and directed to a new team, which will report to the Continue reading →
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