WASHINGTON — Justice Connection, a group of Justice Department alumni that supports current and former department employees, sharply criticized Harmeet Dhillon in a statement responding to her resignation as head of the department’s Civil Rights Division.
“Harmeet Dhillon has been the most destructive, lawless, and hateful head of the Civil Rights Division in DOJ history,” Executive Director Stacey Young said in the statement, which the group released Nov. 5.
Dhillon served as assistant attorney general for civil rights in the Trump administration.
According to the group, more than three-quarters of the division’s lawyers left during Dhillon’s tenure. The statement faulted her for ending police pattern-or-practice investigations and consent decrees, naming agreements involving Minneapolis and Louisville, Kentucky. It also said she declined to open investigations into shootings involving U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
The Civil Rights Division enforces federal laws against discrimination in areas such as voting, housing, employment and policing. Under the previous administration, the Justice Department had reached or sought consent decrees over policing in Minneapolis and Louisville following federal investigations.
Young, referring to the division, said, “Dhillon decimated it.”
The group called on the incoming Senate to use its advice-and-consent power to confirm a successor who will enforce civil rights laws diligently and fairly.
Justice Connection provides free legal, mental health and employment support to current and former Justice Department employees and describes itself as powered by DOJ alumni.
This report is based on information from Justice Connection.
Source: Justice Connection
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