Feds about to take on Ferguson

A federal investigation into the police killing of an unarmed, black 18-year-old in Ferguson, Missouri, lays bare what officials contend are racist, profit-driven law enforcement practices in the small St. Louis suburb. While the Department of Justice cleared Officer Darren Wilson of federal civil rights charges in the August death of Michael Brown, it also called for sweeping changes in a city where officers trade racist emails, issue tickets mostly to black drivers that generate millions of dollars in revenue, and routinely use what investigators called excessive force on people stopped for minor or non-existent offenses. Attorney General Eric Holder said that the department "found a community that was deeply polarized; a community where deep distrust and hostility often characterized interactions between police and area residents." Seriously, people, this has to stop. Ferguson must do better not only as a city, but as a state and a country. To that end, there are already signs of improvement. The city, for example, no longer issues failure-to-appear warrants, has eliminated a fee for towing cars, and rescinded warrants for nearly 600 defendants. But more needs to be done, for example, what about having more blacks on the force?