A Justice Dept. investigation into a specialized narcotics unit of the Springfield, Mass., Police Department found officers routinely used excessive force, including punching people in the face and using head strikes in violation of the Fourth Amendment.
The Springfield, Mass., police narcotics squad regularly punched people in the head and kicked them, according to a Justice Department investigation.A Justice Department investigation into a specialized narcotics unit of the Springfield, Massachusetts, Police Department found officers routinely used excessive force, including punching people in the face and using head strikes in violation of the Fourth Amendment of the Constitution.
Investigators"identified a specific trend of Narcotics Bureau officers striking suspects in the head, or otherwise using force that results in blows to the head, in situations where such force is not justified." The investigation"revealed chronic issues with the use of force, poor record keeping on that subject and repeated failures to impose discipline for officer misconduct," U.S. Attorney for Massachusetts Andrew Lelling said in a statement.
One such chase ended with one man being slammed to the pavement, leaving him with"severe contusions and dark bruising on the right side of his face, a large black eye, a gash on the bridge of his nose, and additional abrasions on the left side of his face and the left side of his nose," that investigators said were"consistent with repeated strikes of his head."
Unlike most other police departments, current"SPD policies do not require officers to report 'hands on' uses of force such as punches and kicks," the report stated.
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