In re: DOJ Investigation of City of Bakersfield Police Department

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Case Name	In re: DOJ Investigation of City of Bakersfield Police Department	PN-CA-0011
Docket / Court	No Court Case ( No Court )
State/Territory	California
Case Type(s)	Policing
Attorney Organization	U.S. Dept. of Justice Civil Rights Division
Case Summary	In 2003 and 2004, the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice [DOJ] conducted an investigation of the City of Bakersfield Police Department pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 14141. On April 12, 2004 the DOJ issued a technical assistance letter to the department. In the letter, ... read more > In 2003 and 2004, the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice [DOJ] conducted an investigation of the City of Bakersfield Police Department pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 14141. On April 12, 2004 the DOJ issued a technical assistance letter to the department. In the letter, the DOJ made specific recommendations regarding changes to the department's written policies in the following areas: use of force and use of force reporting, firearms and impact weapons, citizen complaint procedure, monitoring officer conduct and the disciplinary process. As of the date of this summary, it is not clear whether the DOJ investigation remains ongoing. Dan Dalton - 01/22/2007 compress summary

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Issues and Causes of Action

Issues

Constitutional Clause

Unreasonable search and seizure

General

Excessive force

Failure to discipline

Failure to supervise

Failure to train

Inadequate citizen complaint investigations and procedures

Racial profiling

Plaintiff Type

U.S. Dept of Justice plaintiff

Special Case Type

Out-of-court

Causes of Action

34 U.S.C. § 12601 (previously 42 U.S.C. § 14141)

Case Details


Defendant(s)	Bakersfield Police Department
Plaintiff Description	United States Department of Justice
Indexed Lawyer Organizations	U.S. Dept. of Justice Civil Rights Division
Class action status sought	No
Class action status granted	No
Filed Pro Se	No
Prevailing Party	Unknown
Public Int. Lawyer	Yes
Nature of Relief	Unknown
Source of Relief	Unknown
Filed	2003
Case Ongoing	No reason to think so

Additional Resources


	Policing the Police: The Impact of "Pattern-or-Practice" Investigations on Crime https://www.nber.org/papers/w27324 Date: June 2020 By: Tanaya Devi, Roland G. Fryer Jr (Harvard Faculty) [ Detail ]
	Data examining the Department of Justice's civil rights investigations of local and state police departments Marshall Project Date: Jan. 17, 2017 By: Tom Meagher (Marshall Project) [ Detail ] [ External Link ]
	The Civil Rights Division’s Pattern and Practice Police Reform Work: 1994-Present https://www.justice.gov/ Date: Jan. 4, 2017 By: U.S. Department of Justice [ Detail ] [ External Link ]
	An Interactive Guide to the Civil Rights Division’s Police Reforms https://www.justice.gov/ Date: Jan. 4, 2017 By: U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division (U.S. Department of Justice) [ Detail ] [ External Link ]
	What Happens When Police Are Forced to Reform? Date: Nov. 13, 2015 By: Kimbriell Kelly, Sarah Childress and Steven Rich (Frontline/Post) Citation: Washington Post (Nov. 13, 2015) [ Detail ] [ External Link ]

Documents

Docket(s)

No docket sheet currently in the collection

General Documents

Investigation of City of Bakersfield Police Department

PN-CA-0011-0001.pdf | Detail
Date: 04/12/2004

People


Plaintiff's Lawyers	Brown Cutlar, Shanetta Y. (District of Columbia) show/hide docs PN-CA-0011-0001 Scott, McGregor W. (California) show/hide docs PN-CA-0011-0001
Defendant's Lawyers	Gennaro, Virginia (California) show/hide docs PN-CA-0011-0001