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122604122602122602Holder: Cleveland PD engaged in pattern of excessive forceAfter a 22-month long investigation into the Cleveland Police Department's practices, the Justice Department said that it found reason to believe the city's police engages in a "pattern or practice of using excessive force," Attorney General Eric Holder said Thursday.2014-12-04 13:00:00disabled2365381302-kIHK0T8nCctrue

The Cleveland Division of Police has exhibited a pattern of unnecessary and excessive uses of force, Attorney General Eric Holder said Thursday.

Holder, alongside Assistant U.S. Attorney General Vanita Gupta, announced the findings at a news conference, revealing a Justice Department civil rights investigation into the Cleveland polices use of force that was launched in March 2013.

The investigation, Holder said, revealed unnecessary and excessive examples of deadly force, use of tasers and pepper spray, and force against the mentally ill even in cases where police were called simply for a welfare check. Holder added that, in many of the situations where force was used, the confrontations were caused by the use of poor and dangerous tactics.

In response, Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson signed an agreement that will commit the city and the police to develop a court enforceable consent decree, including the hiring of an independent party to monitor future reforms.

Accountability and legitimacy are essential for communities to trust their police departments, said Attorney General Eric Holder in a DOJ statement, and for there to be genuine collaboration between police and the citizens they serve.

The full report can be read below:

The full Justice Department can be read here:

WASHINGTON Attorney General Eric Holder announced today that the Justice Departments civil rights investigation into the use of force by the Cleveland Division of Police has found a pattern or practice of unreasonable and unnecessary use of force. To address these findings the Justice Department and the city of Cleveland have signed a statement of principles committing them to develop a court enforceable consent decree that will include a requirement for an independent monitor who will oversee and ensure necessary reforms.

Accountability and legitimacy are essential for communities to trust their police departments, and for there to be genuine collaboration between police and the citizens they serve, said Attorney General Eric Holder. Although the issues in Cleveland are complex, and the problems longstanding, we have seen in city after city where we have been engaged that meaningful change is possible. There are real, practical and concrete measures that can be taken to ensure not only that police services are delivered in a constitutional manner, but that promote public safety, officer safety, confidence and collaboration, transparency, and legitimacy.

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Holder: Cleveland Police Department engages in pattern of using excessive force