BOSTON — The Department of Justice announced that it is conducting an investigation into the Worcester Police Department to determine if it has “an overall pattern or practice of conduct” in terms of excessive force or discriminatory hiring.
“This is the beginning of the process. We will go where the facts take us,” said Rachael Rollins, the U.S. attorney for Massachusetts, in a statement.
“You will hear from me at the end of the investigation, irrespective of outcome,” she continued. “Our ultimate goal is to ensure that policing in Worcester is constitutional, safe and effective all while the civil rights of their residents remain intact.”
The investigation also will look into the department’s “systems of accountability,” which includes how it handles complaints of misconduct and discipline, according to the announcement.
The DOJ opened the investigation “based on information provided to the Justice Department,” according to a statement by Assistant Attorney General Kristin Clarke of the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division, but details of that information were not revealed in the statement.
This marks the second Massachusetts police department to be investigated under provisions and requirements of the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994, a sweeping law that across 356 pages overhauls a wide range of criminal justice issues and was “the largest crime bill in the history of the country,” according to a DOJ fact sheet.
The earlier 2018 investigation into the Springfield PD was resolved by a consent decree in 2022, according to the DOJ.
“Ensuring that our law enforcement officers act in a constitutional and non-discriminatory manner is among the highest priorities of the U.S. Department of Justice,” Clarke said in her statement. “Our pattern or practice investigations are a key tool in our efforts to ensure community safety and promote constitutional policing across the country.”
———
