Arlington Will ‘Vigorously Defend’ Itself Against Civil Rights Lawsuit

ARLINGTON, MA — The Town of Arlington released a statement earlier this month saying it will “vigorously defend” itself against a federal lawsuit that was filed against the Arlington Police Department.

The lawsuit, filed by Lawyers for Civil Rights (LCR) on behalf of Somerville resident Donovan Johnson, claims that Johnson was racially profiled by Arlington police officers in February 2021.

According to LCR, APD officers "wrongfully stopped, searched, arrested, and assaulted” Johnson while searching for a theft suspect who they knew was a white male. Johnson, who was walking home from a local CVS at the time, saw a white man run past him. However, the police took both Johnson and the suspect into custody.

"Mr. Johnson repeatedly told the officers that he was not involved in whatever they were investigating and pleaded with them to be released,” the lawsuit says. "The officers did not release Mr. Johnson."

Despite the racial profiling claims, the Town of Arlington claims a private investigation has been conducted against the officers involved and “no evidence to support a claim of racial profiling or excessive use of force” was found.

However, the investigator did find that officers violated some department policies, the town said. Three officers were disciplined, one officer and the sergeant received mandatory re-training, and the sergeant received remedial supervisor training. The third officer later left the department.

“The Town of Arlington Police Department is committed to providing equal and fair justice to all its residents and visitors,” Town Manager Sandy Pooler and Police Chief Julie Flaherty said in a joint statement. "It trains its staff to administer justice without regard to race and conducts ongoing training in diversity, equity and inclusion.”

The town said it has not yet been served with the suit and became aware of it through the media.