Background: Across the country, taxpayers continue to bear the price of police misconduct, which has cost city governments billions of dollars over the course of the last decade. In many instances, millions of dollars are paid on behalf of the same officers who engage in repeated incidents of serious misconduct that goes unchecked. The District government paid out more than $90 million in settlements resulting from police misconduct between 2010-2020—the fifth highest amount paid by any city.
Our Position: If the Council is truly dedicated to passing a fiscally responsible budget for Fiscal Year 25, police misconduct must be a top priority. The ACLU-D.C. strongly urges the Council to fund front-end police accountability measures, including our recommendations.
