Federal oversight of the Cleveland Division of Police will continue for at least two more years after the judge overseeing the city’s consent decree determined Cleveland has made progress but has not met all of the requirements needed to end court supervision.
U.S. District Judge Solomon Oliver rejected a request from the City of Cleveland and the U.S. Department of Justice to end the consent decree.
The decision comes after Mayor Justin Bibb publicly pushed to bring the decade-long federal oversight to an end. In February, the city and Justice Department jointly filed a motion seeking to terminate the consent decree, arguing the Cleveland Division of Police had substantially reformed. Oliver disagreed.
Federal oversight of Cleveland police began in 2015 after a Department of Justice investigation found the department engaged in a pattern or practice of using excessive force.
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Since then, Cleveland police have been required to implement reforms in a number of areas under the supervision of a federal monitor and the court.
The current monitor, Christine Cole, found the department had made multiple improvements in several categories in her latest semiannual report. But in his two-page decision, Oliver said there are still a number of areas in which the city has not reached compliance.
As a result, despite objections from the city and Justice Department, federal oversight will continue until at least October 2028.
The extension may not come as a complete surprise. Cole’s contract to serve as monitor had already been extended through the summer of 2027.
News 5 reached out to Mayor Bibb’s administration for comment but did not receive a response by deadline. News 5 Investigators have been following Cleveland’s consent decree and the city’s efforts to reform its police department since federal oversight began in 2015.
This is a developing story. Check back for details.
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