The Albuquerque Police Department will overhaul its use of force policies, recruitment, training, internal affairs procedures and field supervision of officers under terms of a sweeping settlement agreement between the city and the Department of Justice, the Albquerque Journal reports. The 106-page document requires widespread changes ranging from SWAT team protocols to banning chokeholds to auditing the use of every Taser carried by officers. It includes provisions for a civilian review agency and various public advisory councils designed to increase community interaction.
It provides for a monitor who will report on the city's compliance to the DOJ, the city, the public and to a federal judge. The judge has the power to enforce terms of the agreement, which will be filed in U.S. District Court by Nov. 10. Mayor Richard Berry estimated the cost at between $4 million and $6 million in the first year. Some requirements in the agreement already have been undertaken by the department since Berry appointed Gorden Eden as police chief, such as policies requiring that officers carry only department-issued firearms and requiring crisis intervention training for all officers. The requirements in the document are a mix of reinforcing traditional police command structures and opening up the department to new voices, in particular in the area of mental health policies.