Ferguson police chief resigns after scathing Justice Dept. report

By Carey Gilliam, Reuters.com

The police chief of Ferguson, Missouri, resigned on Wednesday, following a scathing U.S. Justice Department report that found widespread racially biased abuses in the city’s police department and municipal court.

Ferguson Police Chief Thomas Jackson at a press conference held August 13, 2014.

The resignation of Chief Thomas Jackson, which the city announced in a brief statement, is the latest in a string of departures since the Justice Department… probe had uncovered a range of unlawful and unconstitutional practices.

Protesters had called for Jackson’s removal since the fatal shooting of an unarmed black teenager by a white Ferguson police officer on Aug. 9…

But it was the Justice Department findings that the police department was routinely targeting African-Americans for arrests and ticketing, largely to raise revenue for the city, that led to what the city called a “mutual decision” for Jackson to resign.

Jackson’s departure follows those of Ferguson City Manager John Shaw and Municipal Judge Ronald Brockmeyer earlier this week…

“Chief Jackson stepping down is long overdue,” said Patricia Bynes, a local Democratic leader. “It should not have gotten to this point. All the things that the Justice Department found that happened under his watch, you really have to question what made him think he could still be chief of police.”

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