Federal investigators say the Cincinnati Police Division needs to improve policies on use of force, citizen complaints, training and supervision.

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        At the same, Assistant U.S. Attorney General Ralph Boyd Jr. heaped praise Monday on the division and said city officials were cooperating to make changes. He would not outline specifics.

        The comments by Mr. Boyd, the Justice Department's top civil-rights lawyer, were the first public statements by the Justice Department since it began its investigation of the police division in June.

        They came on the same day attorneys concluded the case against Officer Stephen Roach, whose fatal shooting April 7 of an unarmed African-American man who was fleeing police led to the worst riots in Cincinnati since 1968. The riots prompted Mayor Charlie Luken to ask for the federal help.

        “The (Justice Department's) goal in conducting this review has been to work with the city to identify areas in which police practices may be improved,” Mr. Boyd said. “This review is ongoing.”

        Mr. Boyd, flanked by Mr. Luken and Police Chief Tom Streicher, refused to give details about any police deficiencies. He would say only that Justice Department consultants working with the police division have made a number of suggestions.

        Areas needing further study, according to Mr. Boyd:

        • Policies guiding the use of force by police officers.

        • Training and supervision, including beefing up officers' decision-making skills.

        • Handling of citizen complaints by police to remove impediments and improve the accuracy of the complaint process.

        “Principally, there is a sound foundation,” Mr. Boyd said of the police division. “The chief and the city have already taken several steps to improve policing, and we are confident they will continue to do so.”

        Chief Streicher said he expects to speak with investigators about specifics in about three weeks.

        “I told them these areas are a constant focus of our attention,” he said. “And they are.”

        Ted Schoch, a retired officer who directs the division's training academy, said he has not yet learned of any specific changes to be made to the curriculum. He said he and several academy instructors spoke to investigators some time ago about use of force, firearms and other issues.

        While the Justice Department could sue the city's police division to force reforms, U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft said at the onset he wanted to work with the city. Chief Streicher said he thinks the federal officials have made good on that promise.

        The chief has consistently said he did not think the federal investigators would find significant problems with the 1,020-officer department, but that he would be willing to listen to any of their suggestions for improvement.

        Since their investigation began, Justice Department lawyers have interviewed dozens of city officials, police officers, community council leaders and alleged victims of racial profiling and police violence.

        Investigators also took thousands of pages of city documents, say attorneys representing the city. The Justice Department gave City Hall a six-page letter requesting reports, complaints, videotapes and other documents related to the division, its use of force and training.

        Before Monday's news conference, Justice Department lawyers spent about an hour briefing city officials about their preliminary findings. While specific requests for change were made at that meeting, Mr. Boyd and other officials at the news conference declined to outline them.

        Critics of the police division said Monday that they were not surprised by what Mr. Boyd said.

        “That's what I gleaned from my interview,” said Keith Borders, chairman of the Citizens Police Review Panel, who met with investigators in July. “They are making proposals to the city and the police department. It's at the point where the proposals are not followed that something might happen.”

        As the only civilian police oversight board, the review panel is supposed to receive a copy of all complaints filed against police officers. But a recent Enquirer investigation revealed that hundreds of complaints were being filed every year without any outside review.

        Mr. Borders said he expects more aggressive changes in the police division will come out of a federal lawsuit filed against the city for racial profiling.

        Kenneth Lawson, one of the lawyers who filed the profiling suit, said the Justice Department's position was expected. He said the lawsuit, which has been put on hold while an independent mediator works with residents, police officers and city officials, will result in significant changes.

        Mr. Lawson said he would have been “flabbergasted” if the Justice Department found nothing wrong with the division. But the issues raised by federal investigators are at the heart of the lawsuit.

        “Everybody wants to resolve the problem,” he said. “In the past, there has been a lot of name-calling and finger-pointing. I think what the Justice Department says is positive. I think the chief and the city want to work in a way to resolve this issue.”

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