The Department of Justice under President Trump is taking decisive action to reverse what it calls “politically motivated overreach” by the previous administration, announcing plans to dismiss multiple civil rights lawsuits and investigations filed against police departments during the Biden era.
The DOJ will formally move to terminate federal consent decrees imposed on police departments in Minneapolis and Louisville—agreements that were initiated following the deaths of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor. Those consent decrees, meant to impose federally mandated reforms, will now be rescinded, with the Justice Department arguing they were excessively broad, legally unsound, and infringed on local authority.
Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon said the administration is restoring respect for local governance and due process. “These decrees divest cities of their right to control their own police forces,” Dhillon stated. “Federal oversight of this scale is neither constitutional nor effective.”
Beyond Minneapolis and Louisville, the DOJ will also be closing ongoing civil rights investigations into police departments in Phoenix, Memphis, Mount Vernon, Oklahoma City, Trenton, and the Louisiana State Police, among others. Findings of alleged constitutional violations in those jurisdictions will be withdrawn.
This shift marks a dramatic departure from the Biden-era Justice Department, which made police investigations and consent decrees a cornerstone of its policing reform agenda. Trump’s DOJ argues those efforts created unnecessary burdens on local departments, drained resources, and demoralized officers at a time when crime is rising in many cities.
Despite the federal pullback, local leaders in some cities—such as Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey—say they intend to continue reform efforts independently. However, critics argue that without federal pressure, many of those reforms will stall or be quietly abandoned.
Civil rights groups quickly condemned the move, warning that it sends the wrong message on police accountability. They argue that federal oversight is essential in holding departments accountable when local systems fail.
For the Trump administration, however, the rollback is about restoring constitutional limits on Washington’s reach and standing firmly behind law enforcement. “We trust our police,” a senior DOJ official said. “And we’re not going to let Washington bureaucrats use tragedy as a pretext for a power grab.”
This sweeping reversal underscores Trump’s broader law-and-order agenda—prioritizing public safety, local authority, and officer morale over federally imposed reform mandates. Whether these moves bring lasting stability or spark new legal battles remains to be seen.
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