• The Springfield, Massachusetts police department narcotics unit has allegedly routinely used excessive force and violated suspects’ Fourth Amendment rights, according to the Department of Justice.
• Officers in the unit often falsified reports and supervisors didn’t look into use-of-force incidents that officers did report, the report said.
• “The Department of Justice is committed to supporting our law enforcement while holding departments accountable that violate this sacred trust,” said U.S. Attorney General William Barr.

The U.S. Department of Justice announced Wednesday that it had identified a pattern of excessive use of force and systemic deficiencies in the narcotics unit of the Springfield, Massachusetts police department.

The Justice Department’s investigation, which began in 2018, found reasonable cause to believe the Springfield Police Department narcotics unit violated the Fourth Amendment through its use-of-force tactics, according to a report released Wednesday. The Fourth Amendment protects Americans from “unreasonable searches and seizures by the government.”

“Narcotics Bureau officers repeatedly punch individuals in the face unnecessarily, in part because they escalate encounters with civilians too quickly, and resort to unreasonable takedown maneuvers that, like head strikes, could reasonably be expected to cause head injuries,” the report stated.

The report continued: “Unlike most other police departments, SPD policies do not require officers to report ‘hands on’ uses of force such as punches and kicks. This practice enables Narcotics Bureau officers to routinely avoid reporting any use of hands-on force or to submit vague and misleading reports documenting their uses of force.” (RELATED: Debate Rages On Police Reform, Role Of Police Unions In Wake Of Floyd’s Death)

Officers also falsified reports to hide use-of-force incidents and supervisors failed to appropriately review use-of-force incidents that were reported, according to the report. The Justice Department report also noted that not a single questionable use-of-force incident was referred to the Springfield Police Department’s Internal Investigations Unit between 2013 and 2018, blaming deficiencies in the department’s system of accountability.

The report identified a 2016 case in which a Springfield narcotics sergeant arrested two juveniles as an example of excessive use of force. The sergeant, Gregg Bigda, was arrested and indicted in 2018 because of his actions. (RELATED: REPORT: Hackers Are Buying Police Body Cameras On Ebay And Finding Video Evidence

Bigda allegedly kicked and spat on one of the juveniles and said “welcome to the white man’s world,” according to the indictment. He is also accused of interrogating one of the juveniles outside the presence of his parents and failing to read him his Miranda rights.

“I’ve said many times that being a police officer is the toughest job in America. We owe these public servants our respect and our support,” Attorney General William Barr said in a statement Wednesday. “But with this high calling comes a tremendous responsibility to uphold the public trust.”

He added: “The Department of Justice is committed to supporting our law enforcement while holding departments accountable that violate this sacred trust.”

The Springfield Police Department cooperated with the investigation and is committed to “genuine reform,” said U.S. Attorney for Massachusetts Andrew Lelling.

The conclusion of the Justice Department’s investigation comes in the wake of the death of George Floyd who died in Minneapolis police custody on May 25 after an officer kneeled on his neck, video shows. Protesters nationwide have demanded police reform and increased accountability in the aftermath of Floyd’s death. (RELATED: Joe Biden Sponsored Bill Protecting Cops Under Investigation Four Times As Senator)

Springfield, Massachusetts is the third-largest city in Massachusetts with a population of more than 153,000 people, according to 2019 U.S. Census Bureau data. 

Springfield’s 2018 violent crime rate of 989 crimes per 10,000 people is the second highest in the state and higher than the national average of 381 crimes per 10,000 people, according to FBI statistics.

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