Justice Department Announces Significant Milestone in Policing Reform Efforts for the City of New Orleans and New Orleans Police Department

The Justice Department announced today that it, together with the City of New Orleans (the City), has jointly moved for the City to enter into a two-year “sustainment period” according to the terms of a negotiated plan, bringing the consent decree concerning the New Orleans Police Department (NOPD) closer to successful resolution.

The joint motion and proposed plan, which must be approved by the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana, recognize the significant progress NOPD and the City have made that supports entry into the two-year sustainment period required by the consent decree. The two-year sustainment period is designed to ensure that reforms will continue even after the consent decree’s eventual termination. During this time, NOPD and the City have an opportunity to demonstrate that they have the systems in place to monitor their own compliance with the decree and take meaningful corrective actions when necessary. The agreement also requires the City and NOPD to complete important obligations under the consent decree to continue the reform process.

“Today’s filing recognizes the significant progress the City of New Orleans and the New Orleans Police Department have made to ensure constitutional and fair policing,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “We look forward to continuing to work with NOPD, the City and the Court Monitor to achieve full and enduring compliance with the consent decree, an outcome that helps strengthen public safety and enhance police-community relations.”

“After years of hard work and intense collaboration, the City of New Orleans and the New Orleans Police Department are well on the path to demonstrate compliance and sustainability of policing reforms required by the consent decree,” said U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans for the Eastern District of Louisiana. “Constitutional policing standards are essential to preserving community trust and confidence in law enforcement. Our office, along with the Justice Department, will continue to work with the NOPD, the City of New Orleans and the Court Monitor to a positive resolution.”

NOPD has made notable progress in achieving compliance with the consent decree, including reforms that go beyond the requirements of the decree. For example:

• Reduced Use of Force: Since entry of the consent decree, NOPD’s total use of force has declined, and its serious use of force has declined by 47% from 2015 to 2023.
• Improved Stop, Search and Arrest Practices: NOPD’s 2023 Stop, Search and Arrest audit — which used a comprehensive protocol approved by an independent monitor and the Justice Department — found an overall 95.4% rate of compliance with the Stop, Search and Arrest requirements of the decree.
• Improved Response Times: NOPD responded quicker to calls for service after NOPD piloted a program this year which added a new platoon to one of its busiest districts during peak service times. NOPD has committed to evaluating whether it can add a new platoon to other districts.
• Improved Language Access: NOPD has translated key policies and forms into Spanish and Vietnamese (two of New Orleans’ commonly spoken languages besides English), increased the number of their certified Spanish and Vietnamese interpreters, rolled out a smart phone application to enable telephonic translation in the field and committed to periodically assessing the translation services needed throughout the city.
• Policing Free of Gender Bias: NOPD added 11 new investigators to help reduce individual caseloads in cases involving sexual violence. NOPD has also implemented a call‑back process for callers who were gone on arrival when NOPD responded on scene.
• Crisis Intervention Team: The City developed a Mobile Crisis Intervention Unit to help respond to incidents involving people in crisis. The Mobile Crisis Intervention Unit handles calls in place of NOPD or as a co-responder with NOPD. The City’s dispatch system has diverted 3,360 calls for service to this unit from June 1, 2023 to July 17, 2024.

The Civil Rights Division’s Special Litigation Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Louisiana handled the matter.

The Civil Rights Division continues to prioritize constitutional policing and currently has pending investigations into police departments across the country, including in Memphis, Tennessee; New York City; and Rankin County, Mississippi. The consent decree, as well as additional information about the Civil Rights Division, are available on its website at www.justice.gov/crt/special-litigation-section.