Justice Department closes civil rights probe of Mount Vernon Police

The U.S. Justice Department has discontinued an investigation into claims of civil rights violations against the Mount Vernon Police Department, alongside similar actions against seven other police forces nationwide. This decision follows a December 2024 report detailing constitutional rights violations by Mount Vernon police, including the use of unreasonable force and unjustified strip searches.

Investigation Findings

A report released in December 2024 by the Justice Department under the Biden administration found that Mount Vernon police routinely violated the constitutional rights of residents. The investigation revealed that officers frequently used “unreasonable force” against arrestees and performed unjustified body cavity searches. The report also alleged that officers arrested individuals without probable cause, including for actions that did not constitute a crime.

Dismissals of Other Cases

Alongside the Mount Vernon case, the Justice Department Civil Rights Division, under President Donald Trump’s appointee Pam Bondi, began dismissing similar lawsuits against police departments in Louisville, Kentucky, and Minneapolis, Minnesota, on May 21, 2025.

The Biden administration’s Justice Department investigations had previously indicated patterns of excessive force, discrimination against Black people, and free speech violations within these departments. These investigations were separate from criminal trials related to the high-profile killings of George Floyd in Minneapolis and Breonna Taylor in Louisville.

The Justice Department stated that the lawsuits filed by the Biden administration relied on flawed methodologies and incomplete data. The proposed consent order remedies for Louisville and Minneapolis were deemed to involve excessive federal oversight and potential compliance costs.

Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon, Trump’s choice to head the Civil Rights Division, stated that the consent decrees divested local control of policing and imposed unelected oversight with an anti-police agenda. The Civil Rights Division intends to dismiss the Louisville and Minneapolis lawsuits, close the underlying investigations, and retract the Biden administration’s findings of constitutional violations. This action will also apply to police departments in Mount Vernon, Phoenix, Arizona, Trenton, New Jersey, Memphis, Tennessee, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and the Louisiana State Police.

Criticism of the DOJ’s Actions

The Justice Department’s decisions to drop the legal actions drew criticism from the ACLU, the NAACP, New York State Attorney General Letitia James, and Kristen Clarke, who previously oversaw the civil rights division in the Biden administration.

Clarke stated that the investigations were led by career attorneys based on data, body camera footage, and information from officers. She emphasized that the consent decree reforms were carefully negotiated with support from law enforcement leaders and local officials.

The New York Civil Liberties Union and local partners launched the “Seven States Safety Campaign,” filing public records requests to uncover police misconduct in Mount Vernon and six other jurisdictions.

Daniel Lambright, Special Counsel for Criminal Justice Litigation at the NYCLU, stated that the Mount Vernon Police Department requires transparency and must implement changes to confront police misconduct and protect residents.

Mount Vernon’s Response

Following the release of the Justice Department report in December 2024, Mount Vernon Mayor Shawyn Patterson-Howard stated the city’s commitment to addressing identified deficiencies and emphasized full cooperation with DOJ investigators. She affirmed the dedication of police officers and leadership to keeping the community safe and building public trust.

A spokesman for the Mount Vernon mayor, police chief, and commissioners declined to comment on the Justice Department’s decision to end the case against the police department.