Federal prosecutors on Thursday published a report detailing civil rights violations systematically committed by the police department in Mount Vernon, N.Y. File Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI | License Photo
Dec. 13 (UPI) -- Federal prosecutors are accusing the Mount Vernon Police Department of committing civil rights violations, such as routinely using excessive force, making arbitrary arrests and conducting unlawful strip and body cavity searches.
The Justice Department on Thursday released its report following a three-year investigation into the department, finding that it "engages in a pattern or practice of conduct that deprives people of rights secured by the U.S. Constitution and federal law."
The report states the department engages in using excessive force, including unnecessarily escalating minor encounters and using Tasers and "closed-fist strikes" against suspects who have already been taken to the ground.
It also highlights a practice of making arrests without probable cause and conducting unlawful strip and body cavity searches until at least last year, it said.
An example of of the "inadequate policies, training, supervision and accountability" at the department, as highlighted in the report, is the arrest of two women, ages 65 and 75, in June 2020.
The report states officers conducted a traffic stop on suspicion the women had engaged in a "hand-to-hand drug transaction." Their car was searched, and when no drugs were found, they were driven to the police station, where the women were made to "completely disrobe -- including their bras and underwear -- and told them to bend over and cough."
After no contraband was discovered, the women were taken back to their vehicle and released.
However, an Internal affairs investigation found that the arresting officer had lied and there was no reason for the stop.
"The driver of the car explained she had given her husband a five-dollar bill to purchase a lottery ticket," the report states.
Internal records show that this is the only strip search in 10 years that the Mount Vernon Police Department admits was wrongful, despite the investigation finding both women detectives who performed the search confirmed "they routinely conducted strip and visual cavity searches of all female arrestees, consistent with MVPD practice."
Mount Vernon Mayor Shawyn Patterson-Howard acknowledged receipt of the report on Thursday and vowed to continue working with the Department of Justice to address the issues identified.
"We have never run from this issue. We wholeheartedly support our good officers and at the same time will not tolerate and will punish unconstitutional policing," the mayor said in a statement.
Justice Department officials stated the city has taken preliminary actions to address some of the issues but must implement comprehensive measures to end its unconstitutional practices.
The report outlines 10 recommendations, mostly revolving around the implementation of policies, training and supervision.
"We stand ready to work with Mount Vernon officials to achieve constitutional policing and to strengthen community trust. Police reform will not happen overnight," Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division said in a statement.
Mount Vernon, a suburb of New York City, is home to roughly 67,000 people in Westchester County. The Department of Justice opened its investigation into its police department in December 2021.
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