--- description: Newark police department was mandated by the Department of Justice to overhaul its behavior due to "a pattern of unconstitutional policing." title: DOJ: Newark Cops Have Pattern of 'Unconstitutional Policing' image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta1ce2df2b1b03ba7/69869cb21eebf77d45371f47/490146255.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [U.S.](/section/us/) ## U.S. Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # DOJ: Newark Cops Have Pattern of 'Unconstitutional Policing' ## Video: Behind the Video of a Deadly Confrontation With Police [Watch (HLS stream): Behind the Video of a Deadly Confrontation With Police](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/QGZo2z1Q.m3u8) (3:49)  _Published 2014-07-22. TIME interviews the man who captured a fatal incident between Eric Garner and NYPD officers_ by [Laura Stampler](/author/laura-stampler/) ## Laura Stampler Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jul 22, 2014 7:27 PM CUT  People walk by a police car in downtown on May 13, 2014 in Newark, New Jersey. People walk by a police car in downtown on May 13, 2014 in Newark, New Jersey.Spencer Platt—Getty Images by [Laura Stampler](/author/laura-stampler/) ## Laura Stampler Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jul 22, 2014 7:27 PM CUT Following a three-year federal investigation, the Newark Police Department was mandated by the Department of Justice Tuesday to overhaul its behavior due to [“a pattern of unconstitutional policing,”](http://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/2014/July/14-crt-769.html "undefined") which included stop-and-frisk tactics and the use of excessive force. The DOJ report said that Newark police used excessive force in more than one out of five arrests. Some police, the report found, arrested individuals who either questioned cops’ tactics or behaved in a “disrespectful” manner, a potential breach of the First Amendment. The report also said that many officers in drug and gang units were found to have stolen property from people they had arrested. “Our investigation uncovered troubling patterns in stops, arrests and use of force by the police in Newark,” Attorney General Eric Holder said in a statement. “With this agreement, we’re taking decisive action to address potential discrimination and end unconstitutional conduct by those who are sworn to serve their fellow citizens.” The DOJ probe was launched in 2011 after New Jersey’s American Civil Liberties Union [filed a misconduct complaint](http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/year-probe-feds-monitor-newark-police-24664654 "undefined"). ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3020180/newark-police/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3020180/newark-police/"},"headline":"DOJ: Newark Cops Have Pattern of 'Unconstitutional Policing'","datePublished":"2014-07-22T19:27:28.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-21T09:17:01.264Z","description":"Violations range from stop-and-frisk to use of excessive force","url":"https://time.com/3020180/newark-police/","keywords":["New Jersey","Crime","police"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta1ce2df2b1b03ba7/69869cb21eebf77d45371f47/490146255.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Laura Stampler","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/laura-stampler/"}],"articleSection":"U.S.","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta1ce2df2b1b03ba7/69869cb21eebf77d45371f47/490146255.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Embattled City Of Newark Holds Mayoral Election","caption":"Embattled City Of Newark Holds Mayoral Election","creditText":"Spencer Platt—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/us/","name":"U.S."}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3020180/newark-police/","name":"DOJ: Newark Cops Have Pattern of 'Unconstitutional Policing'"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Behind the Video of a Deadly Confrontation With Police","description":"TIME interviews the man who captured a fatal incident between Eric Garner and NYPD officers","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/QGZo2z1Q/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2014-07-22T16:49:46.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/QGZo2z1Q.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/3020180/newark-police/","duration":"PT3M49S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/3020180/newark-police/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```