U.S. judge Rules that Cincinnati Violated Police Reform Agreement

U.S. District Judge Susan Dlott issued the order Monday after concluding that city officials violated the city's police-reform agreement several times last year. Her ruling means that any future violations could be punished with fines or jail time. The decision comes almost three years after city and police officials signed the Collaborative Agreement, a landmark deal that promised to reform police policies through a cooperative effort with community leaders and civil rights activists. The two sides feuded several times last year before ending up in court after the city denied court-appointed monitors access to staff meetings and ride-alongs with police. One of the monitors, who are intended to track the progress of reforms, was escorted from police headquarters under orders of Chief Tom Streicher. In her ruling Monday, Dlott said the threat of stiff penalties is the best way to ensure that the city will follow the rules set down in the agreement. "Now there is a stick as well as a carrot," said Scott Greenwood, lawyer for the American Civil Liberties Union. "This finding is not based on a minor technical violation. This is about a fundamental breakdown - or shutdown - on the city's part." [more]