Cocktails & Popcorn: Fat, Dumb & Happy - The Next Phase Of The UAW Corruption Climbs Up Another Rung On The TARP Ladder Of Stealin'

in Detroit

On this exciting episode of Cocktails & Popcorn, we have ascended another rung on the ladder of stealin' by exposing another layer of what it is like to be "Fat, Dumb & Happy" in Detroit.

I would be honored to meet the USAA who coined this profound phrase.

Feds charge ex-UAW leader in growing corruption scandal

Detroit — A former senior United Auto Workers official has been charged with wire fraud conspiracy and money laundering, marking an expansion of a federal corruption investigation that has spread beyond Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV.

Michael Grimes — who until last year served as administrative assistant to UAW Vice President Cindy Estrada — received $1.99 million in kickbacks from union vendors, according to the government.

Mike Grimes & Cindy Estrada

He and other unnamed union officials assigned to General Motors Co. were paid hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes and kickbacks from vendors who received contracts to produce promotional merchandise for the UAW, according to a criminal case unsealed Wednesday.

The criminal charges, which could send Grimes to federal prison for up to 20 years, help federal investigators pierce the inner circle of Estrada, a sitting UAW vice president and head of the union's FCA department who has been under scrutiny for almost two years. The case also expands the scope of a criminal investigation that, until now, focused on Fiat Chrysler executives trying to influence contract negotiations by giving UAW officials money, lavish trips and more.

The criminal filing Wednesday described old-school corruption and greed that deprived UAW members of honest leadership and involved officials in charge of the UAW-GM Center for Human Resources, a training center for blue-collar workers. The alleged scheme also defrauded the training center, prosecutors said.

“This is the first shoe to drop involving General Motors and the UAW,” said Peter Henning, a Wayne State University law professor and former federal prosecutor. "It raises the question of what kind of monitoring the UAW was doing, or was there any?"

The criminal case was filed four months after The Detroit News exclusively reported that federal investigators were reviewing whether UAW leaders received kickbacks after giving business executives contracts to produce union-branded clothes and trinkets.

Grimes is the ninth person charged in an ongoing investigation, and the criminal case embroils a training center for blue-collar workers jointly operated by the UAW and GM.

“Mike Grimes benefited only himself, not the UAW membership, and should be fully prosecuted to the extent of the law," union spokesman Brian Rothenberg wrote in an email to The News.

Joe Ashton & Cindy Estrada

The allegations involve a key UAW official who served alongside Estrada, who was assigned to the union's GM department until last year, when she was transferred to head the scandal-plagued Fiat Chrysler department. The News reported in November 2017 that federal investigators were interested in Joe Ashton, a retired UAW vice president appointed to GM’s board in 2014, and Estrada, his successor.

Ashton resigned from GM's board one month after The News report.

"GM has been fully cooperating with the government on its investigation of the UAW Center for Human Resources, and will continue to do so," a GM spokesman said Wednesday. "As a matter of practice, we do not comment on the specifics of an ongoing investigation."

Investigators have expanded the inquiry to all three Detroit automakers and also are focused on whether senior UAW staff were forced to contribute to accounts originally established to buy flowers for autoworkers' funerals, and whether union leaders kept the cash.

Grimes, 65, of Fort Myers, Florida, was charged in a criminal information, which indicates a guilty plea is expected. That could give federal prosecutors another key cooperator in the ongoing investigation.

“I am aware of the charges brought against Mr. Grimes,” Grimes' lawyer Michael Manley wrote in a text to The News. “There will be no comment on the charges or any potential resolution at this time.”

Grimes has not returned calls or message left by The News since April.

The criminal case focuses on self-dealing and kickbacks allegedly paid to union leaders for awarding deals for UAW-branded trinkets, including more than $3.9 million spent on commemorative watches that were never distributed to union members.

The alleged conspiracy started in 2006 and lasted until July 2018, according to the government. During that time, Grimes worked alongside Estrada and served on the UAW-GM training center board alongside Ashton and others. He was paid $150,574 a year.

The scheme described by prosecutors involved Grimes and two unnamed union officials allegedly enriching themselves by deceptively soliciting, influencing and obtaining contracts for two vendors. One contractor, identified by the government as "Vendor A," owned a family-operated business that sold American-made custom logo products, including clothes and accessories.

The second contractor, identified as "Vendor B," was a chiropractor based in Philadelphia and southern New Jersey. The chiropractor treated one of the unnamed union officials for years.

Ashton, 71, lives in Ocean View, New Jersey.

In August 2012, the chiropractor opened a new business that purportedly sold American-made custom watches. The company's only income came from the UAW and the training center operated with GM.

During the alleged conspiracy, Grimes and the two unnamed UAW officials demanded and accepted hundreds of thousands of dollars from the two vendors, prosecutors said.

In 2006, Grimes recommended "Vendor A" provide 23,000 watches to the UAW-GM training center, according to court records. After awarding the contract, Grimes demanded a loan to buy property in Rose Township in northern Oakland County, prosecutors said. The vendor refused and Grimes threatened to cancel the watch contract, according to court records.

"Fearing economic harm to his company, Vendor A agreed to provide a mortgage for $60,000 so that Michael Grimes could buy the property," prosecutors wrote. The vendor also agreed to pay Grimes $1,800 per month for consulting work. The monthly payments rose to $3,800 per month and continued until Grimes retired in July 2018, according to the government.

Grimes also demanded bribes in exchange for not interfering with the vendor's business, according to prosecutors. To hide the bribes, the vendor wrote checks payable to "KKG Consulting," which prosecutors called a sham company. State business records show the company was created by Grimes' wife Karen in 2001.

Karen Grimes
Karen Grimes (Photo: Lee County Sheriff's Office)

From 2010 through 2017, the vendor paid Grimes almost $900,000, prosecutors said, adding that Grimes was involved in another tainted contract in 2011.

This time, an unnamed UAW official identified as "Union Official 1" proposed buying 50,000 "Team UAW-GM" jackets using training center funds. Grimes recommended steering the contract to "Vendor A," prosecutors said.

The vendor later received a $6 million contract. A second unnamed union official directed Grimes to demand an approximately $300,000 kickback for "Union Official 1" prosecutors said. The official received the money in 2012.

Grimes also demanded a $525,000 kickback and threatened to cancel the jacket contract, prosecutors said. Grimes later increased his demand and received $530,000 from the vendor, which he spent paying off property in Fenton, according to the government.

In 2016, Grimes received a $500,000 kickback from the same vendor in exchange for awarding a $5.8 million contract to provide backpacks for UAW members, prosecutors said. The money was funneled through Karen Grimes' sham company, according to the government.

Grimes also received money from another watch contract involving the Pennsylvania chiropractor, prosecutors said.

In 2012, "Union Official 1" told the chiropractor to create a new company so the UAW could buy more than 50,000 watches.

The next year, the UAW-GM training center awarded a $3.97 million contract to the vendor for 58,000 watches. In May 2013, "Union Official 1" demanded a $250,000 kickback, money that was hand-delivered to the union official's home, prosecutors said. A second UAW official also received kickbacks from the watch vendor, according to the government.

To conceal the scheme, the watch vendor wrote "antique furniture" or "furniture" in the memo line of the checks. The second UAW official split some of the money with Grimes, prosecutors said.

The watch contract kickbacks continued until fall 2016, when news broke about the federal corruption investigation involving the UAW and Fiat Chrysler.

"Union Official 1" met with the watch vendor and said "the payments had to stop because of the UAW/Fiat Chrysler investigation," prosecutors said.

The UAW-GM training center received the watches anyway. The 58,000 watches are not on UAW member wrists, however — they are being stored in a warehouse at the training center.

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Cocktails & Popcorn: DOJ, Fiat Chrysler, UAW, TARP & Public Corruption Covert Activities In Detroit

The following is from the U.S. Treasury on TARP Auto Bailout on Chrysler:

Chrysler

In total, Treasury committed $12.5 billion to Chrysler under TARP. Under the loan agreement, Chrysler was required to implement a viable restructuring plan. In March 2009, the Administration determined that the business plan submitted by Chrysler failed to meet that standard and concluded that Chrysler was not viable as a stand‐alone company. The Administration subsequently determined that Chrysler could achieve viability by partnering with the international car company Fiat. As part of the planned restructuring, in April 2009, Chrysler filed for bankruptcy protection. In May 2009, Treasury provided $1.9 billion to Chrysler (Old Chrysler) under a debtor‐in‐possession financing agreement for assistance during its bankruptcy proceeding.Chrysler emerged from bankruptcy in June 2009 as a newly formed entity, Chrysler Group LLC (New Chrysler). Since then, Chrysler has lowered its structural costs, adopted new technologies, rejuvenated its product line, and rebuilt its brands. As of April 2011, the company had achieved five consecutive quarters of operating profit and on March 31, 2011, Chrysler realized its first quarter of positive net income since exiting bankruptcy. More than $11.2 billion of the $12.5 billion committed to Chrysler has been returned to taxpayers through principal repayments, interest, and cancelled commitments.

The following is from Wikileaks Podesta email on the bait and switch TARP scheme using the auto industry.

Now, we have what I see is a preservation of institutions by going after individual rogue actors.

This is what this the theme DOJ is going after, but I wonder where this investigation will take up.

Stay tuned and get your popcorn.

Feds label Fiat Chrysler, UAW as co-conspirators 

FILING ALLEGES YEARS OF VIOLATIONS OF LABOR MANAGEMENT RELATIONS ACT

Detroit — Federal prosecutors labeled the United Auto Workers and Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV as co-conspirators in a widening corruption scandal, an allegation at odds with claims the labor union and automaker were victimized by rogue employees.

The allegation, contained in a federal court plea agreement obtained by The Detroit News on Tuesday, potentially exposes the automaker and the UAW — a cornerstone of the modern American automotive industry — to criminal charges, fines and governmental oversight, according to a former federal prosecutor.

"This does not bode well for Fiat Chrysler and the UAW,"  said Peter Henning, a Wayne State University law professor. "All along, the union and Fiat Chrysler have portrayed themselves as victims, but this indicates the government has a different view."

Federal prosecutors say the union and Fiat Chrysler conspired from before 2009 through 2015 to violate the Labor Management Relations Act and the automaker enabled nepotism to flourish at a blue-collar training center. The law prohibits employers or those working for them from paying, lending or delivering money or other valuables to officers or employees of labor organizations — and from labor leaders from accepting such items.

"From in or before 2009 through 2015, FCA executives conspired with one another, with FCA, with officials at the UAW, and with the UAW, to violate the Labor Management Relations Act," prosecutors wrote in the court filing.

It's the first time FCA and the union have been identified separately from individuals in the case. The government has not brought charges against either the company or the union.

The federal claim of a high-level conspiracy between Detroit’s No. 3 automaker and its most important union comes as 3,000 delegates and union members are gathered this week for the UAW’s quadrennial constitutional convention – and to elect a new slate of officers that has been shaped by the abrupt retirements of two would-be officers amid the ongoing federal probe.

The allegation is the latest development in a widening federal investigation that has led to criminal charges againstseven people, caused upheaval at the top ranks of the auto industry and raised questions about the sanctity of labor negotiations.

The allegation emerged in court documents filed as part of a plea agreement for former Fiat Chrysler executive Michael Brown, 60, of West Bloomfield Township, who helped run the training center, knew about the conspiracy and that Iacobelli and at least four other unnamed Fiat Chrysler officials were funneling more than $1.5 million worth of illegal payments to UAW officials, prosecutors allege.

"Michael Brown knew that the purpose of the conspiracy to provide prohibited payments to UAW officials was to grease the skids in order to obtain benefits, advantages and concessions in the negotiation, implementation and administration of the collective bargaining agreements between FCA and the UAW," prosecutors wrote in the federal court filing. 

The conspiracy described by prosecutors spanned three administrations at the UAW: Presidents Ron Gettelfinger, Bob King and Dennis Williams, who will retire this week during the union's convention at Cobo Center.

UAW president Dennis Williams 

The allegation emerged almost one year into a prosecution that has led to six convictions, including former Fiat Chrysler Vice President Alphons Iacobelli. The case has revealed a cozy relationship between the automaker and the union, long-time adversaries, who prosecutors allege forged a relationship designed to corrupt the bargaining process and implementation of a labor contract for thousands of workers.

"Will this go any higher in the union or the company is the question left dangling here," Henning said. "For union members, they will be especially perturbed by this, that the union colluded with the company."

Alphons Iacobelli

Some of the illegal benefits previously detailed by prosecutors include a $365,000 Ferrari that Iacobelli purchased with money meant for the training center and two bejeweled Montblanc fountain pens that cost $35,700 each. 

Monica Morgan and
her late husband General Holiefield.

Other illegal payments included more than $435,000 to a company controlled by the late UAW Vice President General Holiefield and his widow, Monica Morgan-Holiefield; $262,000 to pay off Holiefield's mortgage and more than $30,000 in flights for Morgan-Holiefield to Miami, Las Vegas and Los Angeles, according to prosecutors. The expenses, paid for by the jointly-operated UAW-Chrysler National Training Center, used money provided by the automaker, the government says.

More than $30,000 was spent throwing a party in August 2014 for former UAW Vice President Norwood Jewell, The News has learned. The party included "ultra premium" liquor, strolling models who lit labor leaders’ cigars and a $3,000 tab for wine in bottles with custom labels that featured Jewell’s name.

Jewell, 60, of Davison, has not been charged with a crime during the ongoing investigation.

More illegal payments bankrolled private accommodations, golf resort fees and lavish meals in Palm Springs, Calif., for Jewell and his top administrative assistant, Nancy Adams Johnson, according to the government. Again, the expenses were paid by the training center with money from Fiat Chrysler.

Former UAW official, Nancy Adams Johnson

A UAW spokesman declined comment and referred to Williams' speech at the UAW Constitutional Convention on Monday, Williams tried to distance the union from the corruption described by prosecutors.

"To be clear: those who misallocated or misused training center funds betrayed our trust," Williams told thousands of union members Monday at Cobo Center. "The UAW has zero tolerance for corruption, wrongdoing, at any level of the organization.

"Now, our leadership team had no knowledge of the misconduct — which involved former union members and former auto executives — until it was brought to our attention by the government."

Norwood Jewell, UAW V.P. of the FCA US

Jewell was linked publicly to the criminal investigation in August, when The News learned he had received a $2,180 shotgun purchased with union training center funds. He announced his surprise retirement in November and remained on the job until January.

“What took place with the people that had been indicted flies in the face of UAW culture," said Harley Shaiken, a professor at the University of California-Berkeley who specializes in labor and the global economy. "The reality is all human organizations are subject to issues of corruption. What’s critical is how the organization responds. And in this case, the UAW has been unambiguous.”

A Fiat Chrysler spokeswoman declined comment Tuesday and referred to previous comments by CEO Sergio Marchionne.

"I join Dennis Williams, the UAW President, in expressing my disgust at the conduct alleged in the indictment which constitutes the most egregious breach of trust by the individuals involved," Marchionne wrote in a letter last year to Fiat Chrysler employees. "This conduct had nothing whatsoever to do with the collective bargaining process, but rather involved two bad actors who apparently saw an opportunity to misappropriate funds entrusted to their control and who, unfortunately, co-opted other individuals to carry out or conceal their activities over a period of several years."

Marchionne has a criminal defense lawyer and has been questioned by federal investigators.

Marchionne was questioned during a private meeting in July 2016 with the U.S. Attorney’s Office in downtown Detroit, sources familiar with the investigation said. The Italian auto executive was escorted to the meeting by his white-collar, criminal defense lawyer, William Jeffress of the Washington, D.C., law firm Baker Botts.

Jeffress is a prominent white-collar defense lawyer who handled post-Watergate legal matters for President Richard Nixon and defended Vice President Dick Cheney’s chief of staff I. Scooter Libby in a high-profile CIA leak trial.

Marchionne, 65, has not been charged with a crime during an ongoing federal grand jury investigation that has expanded in recent months to include training centers funded by all three Detroit automakers. 

Retired United Auto Workers
General Motors Vice President Joe Ashton

In November, The News reported that federal agents were interested in retired UAW Vice President Joe Ashton, who abruptly resigned from the board of General Motors Co. in December, and Cindy Estrada, his successor in charge of the union’s GM department, who is up for re-election Wednesday.

The alleged conspiracy involving the UAW and Fiat Chrysler could end in a settlement with the government that would require new internal controls, fines or an injunction, Henning said.

"There could be some kind of admission that they failed to oversee what was being done at the training center," Henning said.  "Or there could be an agreement to undertake certain measures to make sure this doesn't happen again."

Federal oversight of the UAW could be unprecedented for a union long considered a “clean union” – but not for organized labor. In 1988, the Justice Department sued the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, charging it with labor racketeering in a bid to stamp out corruption and Mafia influence at the union’s highest levels. Prosecutors have not taken any of those steps with the UAW.

A fight for money central to the criminal case involving the UAW and Fiat Chrysler has intensified in recent days. The UAW-Chrysler National Training Center sued Iacobelli and others Friday to recoup $4.4 million it claims was embezzled during the scheme.

During the time of the conspiracy described by prosecutors, Fiat Chrysler executives authorized Holiefield and other UAW officials to offer sham employment at the training center to friends, relatives and allies, according to the court filing.

At the direction of Holiefield and other UAW officials, "numerous individuals were categorized as being on 'special assignment' status to the (training center) when, in fact, those individuals did little work or no work on behalf of the (training center)," prosecutors wrote.

UAW Vice President Cindy Estrada

No relatives are identified by name in the court filing.

Two of Jewell's sons are servicing representatives with the union, according to the UAW's annual filings. Justin Jewell is paid $125,744 while Derik Jewell's total compensation is $116,726.

Allegations of nepotism are not limited to the UAW-Chrysler training center. GM and the UAW operate the Center for Human Resources training center in Detroit. So many relatives of UAW officials have worked there that some dub the facility the "Center for Hidden Relatives."

Details about nepotism within the UAW training centers emerged in 2015 when former Center for Human Resources receptionist Shannan McDonald , unsuccessfully sued the training center. McDonald claimed she was forced to resign after being discriminated against due to a disability.

Estrada was deposed in April 2016.

“Ms. Estrada, do you have a daughter or step-daughter named Tara?” McDonald’s lawyer Jeffrey Burg asked during the deposition.

“Tara White,” Estrada said.

“What is she to you?” the lawyer asked.

“She’s my step-daughter,” Estrada said.

“And is Tara White working for (the training center) now?” the lawyer said.

“Yes, she is,” Estrada said.

“Is she working the receptionist job that Shannan had occupied before Shannan left?” the lawyer asked.

“Yes,” Estrada said.

Days earlier, the lawyer deposed John Ashton,  a facility manager at the UAW-GM Center for Human Resources.

“Who is Joe Ashton?” the lawyer asked.

“He's my uncle,” John Ashton said.

“And did your uncle Joe Ashton assist in any way in getting you the job at (the training center)?” Burg asked.

“Yes,” John Ashton said.

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Beyond The Detroit Phenomena Of The "Fat, Dumb & Happy": TARP & The Big 3

Beyond the Detroit phenomena of the "Fat, Dumb & Happy", there are others who set up the models.

They are not "Dumb, Fat & Happy".

They are highly sophisticated in constructing complex fraud schemes to fund political campaigns and other things.

Fiat Chrysler exec charged in FCA-UAW scandal

Another Fiat Chrysler executive has been charged in the ongoing UAW-Fiat Chrysler scandal that involves union and automotive officials cheating thousands of autoworkers out of $4.5 million in training funds.

Michael Brown, the former director of employee relations at Fiat Chrysler, is charged with lying to a federal grand jury about an alleged bribery scheme involving his boss and others at FCA.

Specifically, prosecutors allege that Brown knew that FCA officials were bribing UAW leaders, but "deliberately" provided "misleading and incomplete testimony" about the scam.  Not only did he know that this was going on, prosecutors allege, but he failed to notify authorities about the corruption.

Brown, who is the second FCA official charged in the case, worked under former FCA Vice President Alphons Iacobelli, a central figure in the case who is accused of raiding $4.5 million from a training center that was supposed to help blue collar workers. Instead, prosecutors say, Iacobelli  funneled the training center funds to himself and and UAW officials, buying everything from luxury vehicles to $35,000 Mont Blanc ink pens.

Prosecutors allege the bribes were part of a bigger plot by Fiat Chrysler executives to keep UAW officials "fat, dumb and happy" by giving them credit cards and urging them to go on spending sprees with money that was supposed to train blue collar workers.

Iacobelli pulled this off, prosecutors said, with the help of a Fiat Chrysler financial analyst who cooked the books to hide the fraud. The FCA analyst, Jerome Durden of Rochester Hills, pleaded guilty in the case and faces up to five years in prison when he is sentenced in May.

Iacobelli also has pleaded guilty in the case and faces up to eight years in prison when he is sentenced in May.

The charges against Brown were filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court in what is known as an "information" charging document, which typically means the defendant has a plea deal in the works.

So far, the federal government has charged six individuals for their various roles in the alleged conspiracy.

Related: 

Feds: UAW official blew $6,900 at steakhouse with FCA workers' money

Feds: Bargaining rivals stole millions from FCA; kept UAW officials 'fat, dumb and happy'

They include Keith Mickens, a top labor leader who helped negotiate contracts between the UAW and FCA. He was charged last month with buying designer clothes, luggage and golf equipment with money that was supposed to help train autoworkers.

According to court records, Mickens used a National Training Center credit card to buy more than $1,000 worth of luggage and  $6,500  worth of electronics, designer clothing and golf equipment for himself and other UAW officials.

Also charged in the scheme are Monica Morgan, 54, of Harrison Township, the widow of the late UAW Vice President General Holiefield. The government said Morgan and Holiefield both stole from the training center with the help of Iacobelli.

Morgan also pleaded guilty in the case last month, but only to a tax crime, admitting she hid $201,000 from the government on her 2011 taxes, but without explaining where the money came from.

She faces 27 months in prison under her sentencing guidelines. She will be sentenced June 4 and also has to pay $190,747 in restitution to the U.S. Treasury.

According to prosecutors, Morgan's photo business once received $70,000 from a charity that was supposed to help children struggling with hardships. The government claims the charity was really a sham, set up by Holiefield and Iacobelli.

During the scheme, the government says, Holiefield was the director of the UAW Chrysler Department and acted as the lead negotiator and the lead administrator for the collective bargaining agreements between the UAW and FCA. He died in 2015.

According to court documents, the UAW-Chrysler National Training Center was funded by FCA and received between $13 million and $31 million a year. Prosecutors say at least $4.5 million of that money was misspent, and allege that FCA executives were bribing union brass with the intention of giving the company a better position at the bargaining table.

The UAW has stressed that the scheme did not affect negotiations.

In a previous  statement, the  UAW has said: “The scheme ... did not affect the negotiation of the terms of our collective bargaining agreements or involve the loss of any union funds.”

The sixth defendant charged in the scheme is Retired UAW Associate Director Virdell King, 65, of Detroit, a one-time rising star at the UAW who made a name for herself as a female pioneer in the male-dominated union. King is accused of — among other things — buying designer shoes, clothing, jewelry and luggage using credit cards that were issued through the UAW-Chrysler National Training Center.

She also was accused of making more than $40,000 in additional purchases that pampered other senior UAW officials, including a shotgun, golf equipment, luggage, concert tickets, theme park tickets and other items. King has pleaded guilty to her role in the scheme and will be sentenced in August.

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CONYERS URGES PEACE IN PURSUIT OF JUSTICE AFTER FERGUSON GRAND JURY DECISION

DETROIT – Congressman John Conyers, Jr. (MI-13) released the following statement after the announcement of the grand jury’s decision not to indict Ferguson, MO police officer Darren Wilson:

U.S. Representative
John Conyers, Jr.

“Though the judicial process was fully exercised in this case, I am disappointed in the grand jury’s decision not to indict police officer Darren Wilson for the shooting of Michael Brown, an unarmed, African-American 18 -year-old.  This result underscores the legal hurdles faced in holding the police accountable for abuse of authority and further illustrates the need for major reform in our criminal justice system.

“It is my sincere hope that in the coming days, we can all focus on the fact that the issues contributing to the Michael Brown shooting are more complex than the criminal indictment of a single police officer can begin to address.  Just as we did during the Civil Rights Movement, I urge those who are upset by the decision to peacefully voice your opposition and exercise non-violent protests to pursue equal justice.

“I hope that the troubling circumstances in Ferguson will serve to galvanize our national resolve to address the much larger history of adversarial relationships between the police and communities of color.  Despite the fact that the majority of law enforcement officers  perform their duties professionally and without bias – and we value their service highly – the issues of race and reasonable suspicion of criminal conduct are so closely linked in law enforcement practices that profiling bias has an impact on virtually every area of criminal justice policy.  In cases like Michael Brown, this specter of racial profiling runs the substantial risk of rendering young minority men suspect as potential perpetrators to be met with the deadliest of force.

“Decades ago, this country made clear through the passage of sweeping civil rights legislation that race should not affect the treatment of individual Americans under the law.  Racial profiling is a direct affront to the Constitutional promise of equal protection that was the goal of the 1960's.  We can cultivate community focused, smart policing that rebuilds trust between residents and law enforcement by ending use of racial profiling and use of excessive force.  The Department of Justice has achieved this result using its pattern and practice authority (42 U.S.C. 14141) in numerous cities across the nation, most dramatically in the Los Angeles Police Department consent decree.  We must reaffirm the concept that when law-abiding citizens are treated differently by those who enforce the law- simply because of their race, ethnicity, religion, or national origin- they are denied the basic respect and equal treatment that is the right of every American.”

On August 11, 2014, Judiciary Committee Ranking Member John Conyers, Congressional Black Caucus Chairwoman Marcia Fudge (OH-11), and Congressman Wm. Lacy Clay (MO-01) issued a letter to the Department of Justice asking for a full civil rights investigation into the shooting of Michael Brown.

On August 14, 2014, Ranking Member Conyers and Reps. Ranking Member John Conyers Jr. (MI-13), Subcommittee on Crime Ranking Member Bobby Scott (VA-03) and Subcommittee on the Subcommittee on the Constitution and Civil Justice Ranking Member Steve Cohen (TN-09) issued a letter to House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (VA-06) requesting a Congressional hearing on several incidents of local law enforcement using excessive force–sometimes deadly–and other violations where civil rights have been infringed upon. The letter also expresses concern over the extensive militarization of local law enforcement.

Conyers Letter to House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (VA-06) requesting a Congressional heari...

The Department of Justice opened a civil rights “pattern and practice” investigation into the Ferguson, Missouri Police Department for possible discriminatory misconduct on September 4, 2014. 

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REPS. CONYERS, FUDGE, CLAY LAUD DOJ INVESTIGATION INTO THE FERGUSON POLICE DEPT.

WASHINGTON – Today, Ranking Member of the House Judiciary Committee John Conyers Jr. (MI-13), Congresswoman Marcia L. Fudge (OH-11) and Congressman Wm. Lacy Clay (MO-01) released the following joint statement after the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced commencement of a separate, new civil rights “pattern and practice” investigation into the Ferguson, Missouri Police Department for possible discriminatory misconduct:

“The Justice Department’s decision to initiate a pattern and practice investigation of the Ferguson Missouri Police Department that we previously requested sends a signal that review and relief for substantive complaints about the quality of policing in the community is on the way.  The Department’s additional decision to engage the St. Louis County Police Department in the COPS technical assistance program is further evidence of the Attorney General’s commitment to remedy the root causes of the unrest triggered by the tragic shooting of Michael Brown. 

Experience has shown that these federal programs have the ability to transform the operations of state and local police departments, opening vital lines of communication and improving public safety.  While the Department cannot be everywhere at once, we hope that the cooperation exhibited by local leaders in St. Louis County will encourage other law enforcement agencies to avail themselves of these and other similar federal programs to address their own policing issues and stopping tragedies like the Michael Brown shooting before they occur.”

# # #

On August 11, 2014, Representatives Conyers, Fudge and Clay issued a letter to the DOJ that requested a full investigation into the shooting of Michael Brown and to consider opening a “pattern and practice” investigation into the Ferguson police department’s law enforcement tactics.

REPS. CONYERS, SCOTT, AND COHEN DEMAND CONGRESSIONAL HEARING ON USE OF EXCESSIVE AND DEADLY FORCE BY POLICE... by Beverly Tran

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REPS. CONYERS, SCOTT, AND COHEN DEMAND CONGRESSIONAL HEARING ON USE OF EXCESSIVE AND DEADLY FORCE BY POLICE

WASHINGTON – On August 15, 2014, House Judiciary Committee Ranking Member John Conyers Jr. (MI-13), Subcommittee on Crime Ranking Member Bobby Scott (VA-03) and Subcommittee on the Subcommittee on the Constitution and Civil Justice Ranking Member Steve Cohen (TN-09) issued a letter to House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (VA-06) requesting a Congressional hearing on recent incidents of local law enforcement using excessive force—sometimes deadly—and other violations where civil rights have been infringed upon.

In the letter, the Congressmen highlighted the troubling events that have transpired in Ferguson and those of similar nature that have occurred recently in New York City, Los Angeles, and Houston. The letter also expresses concern over the extensive militarization of local law enforcement.

REPS. CONYERS, SCOTT, AND COHEN DEMAND CONGRESSIONAL HEARING ON USE OF EXCESSIVE AND DEADLY FORCE BY POLICE...

The House Committee on the Judiciary has jurisdiction over protecting constitutional freedoms and civil liberties, oversight of the U.S. Departments of Justice and Homeland Security, legal and regulatory reform, innovation, competition and anti-trust laws, terrorism and crime, and immigration reform.

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REP. CONYERS STATEMENT ON TRAGIC EVENTS IN FERGUSON, MISSOURI

DETROIT – U.S. Congressman John Conyers Jr. (MI-13) released the following statement in response to ongoing events in Ferguson, Missouri:

“A few facts are clear: A young, unarmed man was shot by a police officer. A small town is under what is essentially martial law. Tear gas and rubber bullets are being used against everyday citizens. Serious and sweeping civil rights violations may have taken place in Ferguson, Missouri.  

The tragic killing of 18-year-old Michael Brown and the events that have transpired since the shooting in Ferguson are reminiscent of the violent altercations that took place during the Civil Rights Movement. Countless African Americans endured unwarranted hostility and excessive force from law enforcement while exercising their right to peaceful assembly and civil resistance.

It is a great travesty to find ourselves again witnessing the blatant violation of our right to peaceably assemble in Ferguson.  As documented by journalists and people on the ground in Ferguson over the last week, state and local law enforcement have grossly mismanaged any attempts to peaceably resolve the situation. Earlier this week, my colleagues and I issued a letter to the Department of Justice asking them to consider expanding the scope of federal involvement and to investigate the legal and civil rights ramifications of the shooting and surrounding circumstances. 

Removal of the St. Louis County Police Department from any involvement in the policing of Ferguson is an important step towards restoring peace and allowing for an independent, thorough investigation to take place. The people of Ferguson deserve nothing less.”

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U.S. Representatives Conyers, Fudge and Clay Letter to DOJ Inquiry Into Michael Brown Death, August 11, 201

U.S. Representatives Conyers, Fudge and Clay Letter to DOJ Inquiry Into Michael Brown Death, August 11, 201... by Beverly Tran

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