SEATTLE (AP) — A federal judge overseeing police reforms in Seattle has warned that efforts to defund the police department could put the city at risk of violating a federal consent decree agreed to eight years ago. The Seattle Times reported that U.S. District Judge James Robart said the Seattle City Council must follow the binding agreement between the city and Department of Justice, which lays out specific training and policy goals aimed at reducing what the department in 2012 found was a pattern of excessive force and evidence of biased policing. City Council recently imposed police budget and salary cuts in response to racial injustice protests last year. But the cuts could affect the department’s efforts to achieve the goals laid out in the agreement.
Judge: Police budget cuts risk violating federal agreement
