After eleven years of oversight, the US Department of Justice (DOJ) announced that it will end federal oversight of the Suffolk County Police Department (SCPD) stemming from a Settlement Agreement entered into in January 2014.
The announcement comes after a report by DOJ concluding that SCPD has met the requirements of the 2014 agreement aimed at stopping discriminatory policing.
SCPD was being monitored on three compliance provisions of the Settlement Agreement with DOJ: (1) bias-free policing; (2) language assistance; and (3) community engagement.
DOJ’s letter said, “Suffolk County Police Department (SCPD) has achieved and maintained substantial compliance with the remaining three sections of the Agreement for at least the previous twelve months. Accordingly, it is appropriate to terminate these remaining sections of the Agreement.”
The Agreement called for SCPD to improve bias-free policing, increase community engagement, and develop additional policies and training, among other things. The DOJ report affirms that SCPD has achieved sustained and substantial compliance with all of the agreement’s terms.
“Suffolk County Police Department’s commitment to protecting the public in a constitutionally compliant way is commendable,” said Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “This Department of Justice is committed to collaborating with law enforcement to make American communities safer.”
SCPD implemented language assistance policies and deployed resources to ensure that people with Limited English Proficiency have meaningful access to police services. It improved reporting and supervision throughout the department. It also improved policies, training, and tracking to better handle hate crimes and misconduct complaints.
U.S. Attorney Joseph Nocella Jr. for the Eastern District of New York, said “Policing in Suffolk County has been enhanced and become more responsive to community needs. The partnership between our Office and the SCPD has strengthened the safety of all residents of the County."
Not everyone is happy with the DOJ actions in this matter, however. LatinoJustice has been involved in alleged discrimination against Latinos in Suffolk County for years and believes DOJ setting SCPD free in this matter is premature. LatinoJustice settled a class action law suit with SCPD in 2023.
Andrew Case, Supervising Counsel for LatinoJustice PRLDEF said, “Relieving the Suffolk County Police Department of monitoring requirements under the DOJ consent decree does not affect LatinoJustice’s separate monitoring of the department to address biased-based policing and racial profiling in its ranks pursuant to a 2023 class action lawsuit settlement on behalf of Latino residents in the county which requires the SCPD to collect and report policing and traffic stop data.”
LatinoJustice commissioned a report that will be released soon. They say the report “reveals the department still issues Latino drivers tickets more often than white drivers for the same offense; issues Latinos more tickets than white drivers, and searches their cars on a lower threshold than used for white drivers.”
LatinoJustice promises it will continue its external monitoring and reporting on SCPD policing practices.