FERGUSON, Mo. — The city of Ferguson’s cost to implement measures spelled out in a consent agreement with the U.S. Department of Justice will be more than $2 million in the first year alone, according to new estimates that raise questions about whether the community can afford it.
The City Council in the St. Louis suburb is expected to decide today whether to adopt the agreement. If it doesn’t do so, the Justice Department could file a federal civil-rights lawsuit. Ferguson was thrust into the national spotlight after the fatal police shooting of 18-year-old Michael Brown.
The community faces a high financial burden either way — fighting the lawsuit would likely cost millions.
Brown, who was black and unarmed, was shot to death Aug. 9, 2014, by white Ferguson police officer Darren Wilson during a confrontation in a street.
Wilson, who later resigned, was ultimately cleared by the Justice Department.
A March report by the Justice Department was critical of police practices and a profit-driven municipal court system. After seven months of negotiations, a consent agreement was announced last month that envisions a topto-bottom reshaping of basic practices such as how to conduct traffic stops and when to use force.
Since then, estimates about how much it will cost were mostly guesswork, ranging from $500,000 to $1.5 million for the first year.
But Ferguson officials on Monday posted an analysis on the city’s website showing the cost estimate to be much higher — between $2.2 million and $3.7 million for the first year, and $1.8 million to $3 million in each of the second and third years.
The consent agreement calls for Ferguson to pay the cost of a Justice Department monitor for at least three years; increase diversity training for officers; and purchase software and hire new staff to maintain statistical analysis of police data on arrests, traffic stops, use of force and other police actions.