Justice Dept. and Albuquerque Seek to End Parts of Police Consent Decree

The Justice Department and City of Albuquerque have filed a motion to terminate portions of the consent decree governing the APD.Photo byAtoosa RyanneonUnsplash

The Justice Department (DOJ) announced Wednesday that it filed a joint motion with the City of Albuquerque seeking court approval to terminate portions of the consent decree governing the Albuquerque Police Department (APD).

The motion follows the independent monitor’s 20th report, also filed Wednesday, which found that the city and APD have reached full compliance with 99% of the consent decree’s terms — the highest level of compliance achieved by APD.

The monitor’s report highlights APD’s significant achievements, including timely and high-quality investigations into use-of-force incidents and misconduct. These accomplishments coincide with a 37% reduction in APD’s use of serious force over the past four years, the department says.

“Our joint motion to terminate additional provisions of this consent decree demonstrates that the Justice Department has come even closer to its ultimate goal of ensuring constitutional and effective policing in Albuquerque,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division in statement.

“We have seen a 37% decline in use of serious force over the last four years, and continue to move reform efforts forward. The Justice Department will continue to work with the City and its police department toward our shared goal of constitutional and effective policing—the community deserves nothing less.”

The joint motion asks the court to terminate 31 provisions of the consent decree that APD has complied with for at least two years. These provisions cover topics such as the use of electronic control weapons (commonly known as Tasers), crisis intervention, crisis prevention, and supervision.

This is the third joint motion filed in the past year, seeking to terminate a total of 183 paragraphs of the consent decree, representing 67% of its enforceable provisions.

APD has made substantial progress in complying with the consent decree, including:

• Properly training all officers on the use of Tasers to ensure they are used lawfully and only when necessary.
• Training specialized officers to respond to behavioral health crises and deploying them across the department. Albuquerque also created a new agency, Albuquerque Community Safety, to send mental health professionals to 911 calls involving behavioral health issues. These initiatives aim to ensure individuals receive the help they need.
• Improving supervision across the department to provide officers with the guidance, direction, and support necessary to be effective and comply with the law.

“This partial termination proves that the hard work of the men and women of the Albuquerque Police Department and the persistent advocacy from the community are achieving real results,” said U.S. Attorney Alexander M.M. Uballez for the District of New Mexico in a statement.