Juctice Department’s Report on Ferguson Repealed

Twelve municipalities call on Missouri court to drop some parts of a law which was aimed at checking police conduct and traffic stop regulations.

 

Judge Jon Beetem of Cole County Circuit  on Monday reviewed some parts of this law which made a difference considering the many injustice on Black drivers especially, stating that the law unconstitutionally but purposefully targeted  St. Louis-area township which enjoyed caps on traffic fines revenues , which were lower than caps of most cities in the State.

Beetem also struck down a special law requirement, involving police traffic stop procedures and written use-of-force policy. He also noted that some parts of the law included a provision that accredit St. Louis County police departments within six years, without funding. Also, included in the repeal was a law which WAS ordained in 2015, to reduce the percentage of traffic fines revenue from 30% to 20%. However St. Louis County was an exception, with a 12.5% cap.

Following Brown’s death, a DOJ report pointed out that Ferguson court system often targeted and victimized blacks and other low-income residents, putting the local government under scrutiny. This screening finally lead to the overhaul of Ferguson’s police and judicial system, but surprisingly, they weren’t part of the twelve districts that called for the abolishment of these laws.

Speaking to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, petitioning attorney Sam Alton commented, “Obviously I’m elated, and I know the municipalities that are involved are elated.”

However, Missouri attorney general’s office has to review the ruling before deciding whether to go ahead with an appeal.

According to Gov. Jay Nixon, an implementation of Senate Bill 5 will allow to cut down the frequent abuses of St. Louis region court systems.

But unless the higher court will deny the repeal on the bill, police injustice on Blacks and other related misconduct will definitely see a rise.

Our only hope is that a higher court will deny this repeal after all.