WASHINGTON — Attorney General Jeff Sessions painted a grim vision of violence in America on Tuesday, telling state law enforcement officials that a recent uptick in killings threatens to undo decades of progress and suggesting police would be more effective if they were subjected to less federal scrutiny.
In his first major policy speech as attorney general, Sessions said his Justice Department would continue to prosecute officers for wrongdoing, but suggested federal civil rights investigations could hinder their effectiveness.
“We need to help police departments get better, not diminish their effectiveness, and I’m afraid we’ve done some of that,” Sessions told the gathering. “So we’re going to try to pull back on this. I don’t think it’s wrong or mean or insensitive to civil rights or human rights. It’s out of a concern to make the lives of people, particularly in poor communities, minority communities, live a safer, happier life.”
He warned of a surging heroin epidemic, rising homicide rates in big cities and said a lack of respect for police has diminished their crime-fighting efforts.
