Evergreen Reporter

Following a comprehensive investigation, the Justice Department announced that the City of Lexington, Mississippi, and the Lexington Police Department (LPD) engage in conduct that deprives people of their rights under the U.S. Constitution and federal law. Lexington is a town of approximately 1,200 people, located about an hour outside of Jackson, Mississippi.

The Justice Department found that LPD unlawfully arrests, jails, and detains people who cannot pay fines or fees without assessing their ability to pay. The department also noted the use of excessive force; conducting stops, searches, and arrests without probable cause; imposing money bail without justification; jailing people without prompt access to court; violating free speech rights; discriminating against Black people; and operating under an unconstitutional conflict of interest because LPD’s funding depends on money raised through enforcement.

Attorney General Merrick B. Garland stated: “Today’s findings show that the Lexington Police Department abandoned its sacred position of trust in the community by routinely violating the constitutional rights of those it was sworn to protect.” He added: “People in that community deserve better, and the Justice Department is committed to working with them, the City, and the Police Department to make the City safer for all its citizens.”

Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco emphasized: “Public safety depends on public confidence in our justice system,” highlighting how LPD's practices undermined this confidence.

Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke commented: “Lexington is a small rural community but its police department has had a heavy hand in people’s lives... For too long, the Lexington Police Department has been playing by its own rules and operating with impunity — it’s time for this to end.”

U.S. Attorney Todd Gee for the Southern District of Mississippi remarked: “Police have the authority to enforce the law, not to act as debt collectors for the City."

Over two years, LPD made nearly one arrest for every four residents in town—primarily for low-level offenses—more than ten times Mississippi's per capita arrest rate. Many arrests were non-criminal conduct like owing outstanding fines or using profanity. In 2023 alone, Black residents were 17.6 times more likely to be arrested than white residents.

Examples cited include breaking down a door to arrest someone for swearing at a public official and tasing someone during an arrest attempt over a tinted windshield violation.

LPD's enforcement strategy resulted in hundreds accruing debt totaling over $1.7 million owed in fines within this small town. The investigation revealed systemic issues including lack of accountability systems and inadequate legal representation for accused individuals experiencing poverty.

The investigation began on Nov. 8, 2023 by career attorneys from Civil Rights Division’s Special Litigation Section along with U.S Attorney’s Office staffers from Southern Districts assisted by law enforcement practice experts reviewing extensive records including body-worn camera footage while interviewing key stakeholders across various levels within city governance structures besides community members’ inputs shaping findings furthered via outreach efforts aimed at remedial measures engagement processes underway post-public report release involving Sept.'s scheduled meeting open towards wider participatory frameworks envisaged ahead collaboratively addressing identified violations holistically moving forward together constructively improving overall civic milieu ensuring just equitable future oriented paradigm shifts aligned sustainably respecting foundational constitutional ethos safeguarding individual freedoms inherently protected therein perpetuating universally applicable human 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