LEXINGTON, Miss.–People in Lexington are being targeted for arrests disproportionately by police, say findings from an investigation by the U.S. Dept. of Justice, which were released Thursday. The findings say about one in four people had been arrested in Lexington, which is ten times the average of police departments in Mississippi, per capita.
In addition, the report said the citizens of Lexington are targeted by overly aggressive policing that results in people owing large fines.
“Lexington’s fines and fees have been absolutely devastating for the people who live there,” said Assistant U.S. Atty. Gen Kristen Clark, head of the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division, which began the investigation in November.
“Although Lexington is [in] one of the poorest counties in America, people owe the police department $1.7 million in outstanding fines. The Lexington Municipal Court has issued bench warrants for over 650 people based on unpaid fines, equivalent to nearly half of Lexington’s population.
Clark said arrests based on the bench warrants are unlawful, though it is a common practice.
She said Black citizens are often the target of aggressive policing measures, which include roadblocks and tactics normally reserved for high-level offenses.
The report also said Lexington Police have locked up and imposed bail without justification or cause, have jailed people unlawfully on “investigative holds”, have retaliated against people who criticize cops, and have persecuted people who record police, violating free speech.
