Arlington NAACP Requests A Department Of Justice Investigation Into The County's Jail

[mahatmakanejeeves]

1:14 PM

Arlington NAACP Requests A Department Of Justice Investigation Into The County’s Jail

Margaret Barthel | https://twitter.com/margaretbarthel

The Arlington branch of the NAACP is calling for a federal investigation into the county’s jail, where seven men of color have died in custody in seven years. In a letter to the head of the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights division, the organization also alleged evidence of “biased policing and unconstitutional practices by law enforcement and personnel” in the jail.

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“The most precious civil right – the right to life – should never be extinguished simply because the Sheriff in a local jail holds someone. These seven men were among the most vulnerable in our community,” the letter reads. “Their deaths have devastated their families and the people of Arlington County and lay bare a pattern of deprivation of fundamental civil rights that mandates investigation and action.”

“We are completely open to any type of independent review,” said Maj. Tara Johnson, a spokesperson for Arlington County Sheriff Beth Arthur, who oversees the detention facility. Johnson noted that the department has already formalized an agreement with the National Institute of Corrections, a federal agency that provides support and guidance to state and federal correctional facilities. The NIC, which operates within the Department of Justice, will review the operations at the jail’s medical unit and provide technical assistance, Johnson said.

“The sheriff wants it done a month ago,” Johnson said. “This is her priority.”

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