It’s Official: Judge Dismisses CASA, Ending DOJ Oversight in ABQ

ALBUQUERQUE – Today, Albuquerque enters a new era of public safety, accountability and community trust. U.S. District Judge James O. Browning has officially dismissed the Court Approved Settlement Agreement (CASA), ending more than a decade of federal oversight of the Albuquerque Police Department (APD).

This historic ruling comes after the City of Albuquerque and the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) jointly filed a motion to conclude the CASA last week, following APD’s achievement of full and effective compliance with all terms of the agreement.

“This ruling finalizes what the department and our community have worked tirelessly for over the last decade: we have earned back the right to run our own police department,” said Mayor Tim Keller. “I made it clear from day one, we would meet our challenges head-on, making hard changes, building new systems, and proving APD can uphold the highest standards on its own. This moment shows that reform and strong policing can go hand in hand, and that trust, accountability, and safety are not competing values — they’re connected. It’s also the beginning of the next generation of our police department, one that is transparent, admits mistakes, holds itself accountable and is fully capable of learning and continuing reforms as needed.”

The CASA was enacted in 2014 following a DOJ investigation that revealed patterns of excessive force. Over the past 11 years, APD underwent a rigorous transformation, embracing new policies, increasing transparency, and embedding accountability into its daily operations.

“It wasn’t an easy road, but we continued to push forward and slowly this team and all of our officers became accustomed to what was necessary to get into compliance,” Chief Harold Medina said. “This is a victory for the men and women of the Albuquerque Police Department who have changed their culture. They are the ones that have put the most blood, sweat and tears into this, faced the most scrutiny. They have done a wonderful job at changing the culture of the Albuquerque Police Department.”

As federal oversight concludes, the City of Albuquerque and APD reaffirm their pledge to continue building a modern, community-focused police department grounded in constitutional policing and public trust.

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Additional background on the Court-Approved Settlement Agreement between APD and the U.S. Department of Justice

·         November 2012 – The DOJ launched an investigation into use of force at APD

·         Nov. 12, 2014 – The DOJ filed a complaint in federal court alleging APD officers were engaging in a pattern or practice of excessive force in violation of the Fourth Amendment.

·         The Court-Approved Settlement Agreement, known as the CASA, highlighted dozens of changes that APD was required to make, including new policies, training for those policies and implementation that meets the definition of Constitutional policing.

·         Over 10 years, the Independent Monitoring Team that oversaw the CASA issued 21 reports that tracked the progress of the agreement.

·         In 2024, the Monitoring Team determined APD met all requirements in the CASA.

·         On April 1, 2025, the City of Albuquerque asked the DOJ to join in requesting the federal judge to dismiss the remaining portions of the CASA.

·         On May 12, 2025, Judge Browning approved the joint request from the City and the DOJ to terminate the CASA.

Constitutional Policing: The overarching change is an emphasis on constitutional policing, whereby APD officers treat those individuals suspected of crime equally, irrespective of race or gender. This has been accomplished through the adoption of policies and training concerning the constitutional application of the use of force on suspects driven by the specific circumstances of that officer’s encounter.

Structural Changes: APD restructured multiple divisions, including the Academy,

Special Operations Division, and Special Investigations Division to provide additional supervisory oversight, and the creation of new units such as the Performance Metrics

Unit and Compliance Bureau.

Administrative Discipline Changes: APD appointed a Superintendent to oversee officer discipline, removing this function from the Chief. Internal administrative policies related to how APD imposes officer discipline is more transparent and predictable.

Community Outreach: Expanded community outreach via the Ambassador program to better communicate with entities and groups impacted by pre-CASA policing. Developing relationships and earning back the trust of minority groups has ensured that the community can have faith in its law enforcement partners.

Performance Transparency: Ensuring that APD’s data is transparent and publicly available furthers the goals of maintaining the community’s trust in law enforcement. APD Officers are mandated to use their recording devices to capture their interactions with the public. APD has created and maintained numerous dashboards the present the underlying data to support its efforts.

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