This article was published in partnership with The Marshall Project, a nonprofit news organization that covers the U.S. criminal justice system.
When the Republican National Convention storms
into Cleveland in July, the security challenges will be formidable, but
not just because the GOP is in turmoil.
The Cleveland Division of Police — which will
oversee the 1,500 cops on its roster and as many as 3,500 more borrowed
from elsewhere — is confronting its own serious internal disorder. It
will be the first police agency to take on a presidential nominating
convention while operating under federal oversight.
Whether that fact turns out to be a historical
footnote or something more troubling depends on a number of factors,
from the temperament of the crowds to the volatility of the convention
itself to the ability of Cleveland's commanders to rein in a department
that has been deemed seriously flawed for the way its officers use
force.
A two-decade-old federal law gives the U.S.
Justice Department authority to sue local law enforcement agencies that
refuse to reform. Seventeen consent decrees — the strictest form of
federal oversight — have been issued since 1997.
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Source: NBC News
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