Institute Releases Newark Police’s Consent Decree: A Solid Foundation for a Work in Progress

Report Offers Retrospective and Offers a Path Forward

NEWARK – The New Jersey Institute for Social Justice today released Newark Police’s Consent Decree: A Solid Foundation for a Work in Progress. 

The new report offers a retrospective on the history, accomplishments and challenges of the Consent Decree under which Newark policing underwent 16 policy reforms over the course of nine years. The Institute served on the Independent Monitoring Team overseeing the reform process, ensuring the community’s input was considered at each step.

“Newark’s police transformation was built from the ground up – rooted in community voice, accountability and collective advocacy,” said Surraya Johnson, Director of the Criminal Justice Reform Program at the New Jersey Institute for Social Justice and the primary author of the report. “Although there is still work to be done, the Consent Decree stands as an example of what disciplined, community-centered reform can achieve. It shows that constitutional policing is possible, that trust can be built, and that meaningful change can occur when a city is serious about transformation.”

Newark’s Consent Decree between Newark and the Department of Justice was initiated in 2016 when a DOJ investigation found that the Newark Police Division demonstrated a pattern of unconstitutional policing behavior, including regularly conducting citizen stops in violation of the Fourth Amendment and disproportionately stopping and arresting Newark’s Black residents.

Noting that Newark was now in “substantial compliance,” U.S. District Court Judge Madeline Cox Arleo terminated the Consent Decree on Nov. 21 of last year.

From the Newark Rebellion in 1967, through the 2016 signing of the Consent Decree, through the work of the Independent Monitoring Team, the report examines the history of police brutality in Newark, the intervention of the Department of Justice and the way policing changed over the nine years of federal oversight – including through 16 new policies addressing stops, search and arrests, use of force, investigation of misconduct, officer discipline, the use of in-car and body-worn cameras, and more.

Through surveys of residents, the Independent Monitoring team was able to track how the community’s perception of police changed over time and gauge the progress being made under the Consent Decree.

“Newark’s reckoning began with violence. The Consent Decree marked a push toward accountability. Now it’s up to the people of Newark to ensure accountability from Newark police,” said Johnson. “Newark’s experience offers lessons not just for this city, but for municipalities across this country still grappling with the unfinished promise of justice.”

As the work of police accountability continues, the report offers several policy reforms that must be undertaken by the state.

“At a time when cities across the country are under siege by violence from federal law enforcement, we are seeing in stark relief the need for communities to be safe from those sworn to uphold the Constitution, the harms of a breakdown in trust, and the role of communities in seeking accountability—all of which guided the work under the Consent Decree,” added Johnson. “As laid out in our report, further action will be necessary to keep progress moving toward public safety in Newark.”

Read the full report here.

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