DOJ Finds Mississippi Police Department Violates Rights Of Black Residents

The police department in a majority-Black town in Mississippi has consistently violated the rights of residents with illegal arrests, as well as by retaliating against department critics, according to a Department of Justice report released Thursday.

The Justice Department launched an investigation into the police department in Lexington last year after several complaints from local attorneys and activists became publicized, as did an audio recording of the town’s former police chief, Sam Dobbins, bragging about shooting a Black man 119 times.

“I shot that ni**er 119 times, OK?” Dobbins was heard saying in the recording, where he also claimed he had killed 13 people while on duty.

The police department “unlawfully” discriminates against Black people, United States Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke said during a press conference. Lexington, which is about an hour from the capital of Jackson, has a population of approximately 1,200 inhabitants; 76% of that is Black people. The DOJ investigation that just concluded was the second on the town since 1963, in which the town was previously found liable for intimidating Black people to vote.

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