Dem AGs Want Congress to Give Authority to Probe Police

Democratic attorneys general in 18 states are calling Congress for "explicit authority" to investigate police departments for police misconduct.

"Urgent action is necessary at all levels of government to remedy the injustice of police misconduct," the attorneys general letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., read, per Politico.

"We therefore ask Congress to give us explicit authority under federal law to conduct pattern-or-practice investigations, to obtain data regarding excessive uses of force by law enforcement officers to support those investigations, and to bring appropriate enforcement actions in federal court to ensure constitutional policing in our states, particularly when the federal government is unwilling or unable to act."

Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul and New York Attorney General Letitia James are leading the push for picking up the checks and balance on police abuse, particularly with regard to African Americans.

"We're the legal protector of citizens unable to protect themselves," Raoul told Politico. "So when the Department of Justice says — as it previously has — that it is not the federal government's responsibility to manage non-federal law enforcement agencies, attorneys general have a duty to step in and hold our local law enforcement agencies accountable.

"Even if a more friendly administration were to come along, the reality is federal law enforcement doesn't have the bandwidth to do it all."

After the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 there were 69 investigations of police departments and 40 consent decrees, according to the report. There have been none under President Donald Trump's administration.

One-time Trump Justice Department Attorney General Jeff Sessions made it a point to states they are in charge of handling investigations into state and local law enforcement.

"Local control and local accountability are necessary for effective local policing," Sessions wrote in a memo to states, per Politico. "It is not the responsibility of the federal government to manage non-federal law enforcement agencies."

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