Lawsuit results in more blacks on Frederick, Md., police department

Jet, Jan 25, 1993

A lawsuit alleging that the police in Frederick, Md., used traffic stops as a pretext to harass and intimidate Black residents has resulted in the hiring of more Black police officers.

Police and city officials announced the settlement just one week before the case was scheduled for trial, thereby ending the suit filed by Willie J. Mahone.

A 40-year-old Black civil rights lawyer, Mahone said: "The settlement addresses long-standing inequities in the police department and will bring respect to all people in the community."

In the settlement, police department officials agreed to hire one Black officer for each non-Black officer hired until the department is 13 percent Black, which is the percentage of the Black population in the city.

In addition, the settlement requires the department revise its racial sensitivity training for officers and supervisors and to use psychological testing to eliminate applicants "who believe in the inferiority of any race, religious or ethnic group.

Also the settlement requires the city to appoint a community liaison officer and establish penalties for officers who use racial slurs. The department's current policy does prohibit racial slurs but does not provide a punishment for violators.