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11.18.04

ACLU FILES ENFORCEMENT MOTION IN CINCINNATI POLICE PRACTICES LAWSUIT

CINCINNATI – The ACLU of Ohio today announced that it has filed a motion in its landmark police reform case seeking to enforce agreements between the City of Cincinnati, the U.S. Department of Justice, the Fraternal Order of Police, and the ACLU. 

The motion, filed today in federal court, asks federal Magistrate Judge Michael Merz to declare that the City of Cincinnati has breached the agreements by failing to implement problem solving in the department; improperly employing arbitrary arrest sweeps in the City; seeking premature termination of the agreements, failing to implement terms on police accountability, and preventing access to monitoring activities including training, ride-alongs, and document review. 

“We filed this motion to make the city honor its promises. The city cannot just falsely declare success and walk away from these agreements,” class counsel Scott Greenwood said. Class counsel Alphonse Gerhardstein added, “The City is in breach. The African American community needs proof that the Citizen Complaint Authority will be heeded and that all of the terms will be followed. The City must now be ordered to keep their promises.” 

The ACLU filed a class action lawsuit against the city of Cincinnati in 2001 challenging a three decade pattern of race-biased policing against African-Americans. The parties entered into a court-supervised agreement in April 2002 incorporating a related agreement between the city and the U.S. Department of Justice mandating significant reforms. 

The nonprofit, nonpartisan ACLU of Ohio is a state affiliate of the national ACLU. Funded entirely through charitable gifts and membership dues, the ACLU defends individual rights through litigation, lobbying, and educational initiatives. The ACLU of Ohio has staff offices in Cleveland and Cincinnati and community and campus chapters located in every region of Ohio. There are over 18,000 ACLU members and supporters in Ohio and over 400,000 nationwide. To learn more about the ACLU of Ohio interested persons are invited to visit the organization’s website at www.acluohio.org.
 

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