DOJ Dismisses DEI Lawsuits Against Police, Fire Departments

Attorney General Pam Bondi has ordered the Department of Justice to dismiss lawsuits filed by the Biden administration that accused police and fire departments of discriminatory hiring practices related to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives. Bondi criticized the previous administration's approach, asserting that communities deserve first responders selected based on merit rather than to meet DEI quotas. The DOJ stated that the lawsuits did not provide evidence of intentional discrimination by the departments, only statistical disparities. This move aligns with the Trump administration's broader effort to end DEI programs and focus on merit-based hiring. The Biden administration previously sought to reform hiring practices after claiming that certain tests disproportionately disqualified Black and female applicants. In contrast, Bondi and her team argue that such reforms unfairly penalized departments for using race-neutral hiring tools.